Begin Again
by witchenmoon1
Summary: Sequel to Never Change, third and final installment in the Zutara Trilogy. Katara and Zuko go on a much needed vacation, but what kinds of mischief do their kids get in? Lee, Rina, Maya and Tenu return and are ready to follow in their parents' footsteps.
1. Chapter 1

So it begins again...

The rays of the new sun swept through the room warming the occupants situated neatly inside their warm bed. A pair of golden eyes regarded a pair of blue ones happily. With a sigh the blue eyed woman sat up and yawned bringing her knees closer to her chest. She turned her head towards her husband who finally shifted and sat up on the edge of the bed, his back to her. He burrowed his face into his hands and she reached over and gingerly swept her hand over his back smoothly. He turned around and caught her hand in one of his and kissed the top of it. He tugged a little at her arm as he moved his kisses up its length eventually tugging her enough so that his face reached hers and he kissed her lips tenderly.

She arched an eyebrow up at him and he smirked.

"Good morning." He said to her softly.

"Good morning to you." She replied softly. The sound of her voice enticed him even more and he wrapped an arm around her torso and shoved her down. He growled as he crawled towards her. She was laughing now, the beautiful melody of water thick in her voice. He kissed her softly and they kissed for a while just enjoying the quiet moment with each other.

His lips traveled their way to her neck making her moan as his hands secretly began to smooth away her robe off her shoulders. She let out a giggle and he turned his eyes to regard her once more, before he kissed her once again. This time he tugged a little at her lips with his teeth making her respond more forcefully towards him.

He wrapped an arm around her waist and lifted her closer to him balancing them both. Her hands began to trace the outlines of his muscles hurriedly as she relished in the pure heat emanating from his body.

He disrobed her quickly and she tugged at the edges of his trousers. The room suddenly grew hotter and then there was a knock at the door.

They opened their eyes to look at each other, the man letting out a groan while the woman in his arms let out a soft sigh. He got off of her pulling his pants on and sat down throwing her the robe that had just been discarded. She wrapped it around herself and got up to answer the door.

She opened the door to see a pair of children expecting her enthusiastically. The older one was a girl with golden eyes and black curls on her head. They cascaded over her tan skin. Right now she had her curls up into a bun with a red ribbon that matched her outfit. She wore a black and red trouser shirt set. She jumped up excitedly at her mother.

The boy on the other hand, who was younger, had brown curls on his head that fell over his pale skin and on to his bright blue eyes. His own attire had a light blue shade over it with white bordered edges. He waited patiently as his sister next to him gleamed for attention.

The girl shoved right past her mother the boy following quietly and Katara watched in amusement as the girl regarded her mother and father suspiciously.

"Mom! Dad! I can't believe you guys aren't dressed yet. They'll be here any minute. Come on, Rina and Lee are outside waiting for us." The preteen was quiet for a moment her eyes tracing back from her mom whose arms were crossed and her father who was standing away from them, his side to her.

"What were you guys doing anyways? Oh you guys weren't…yuck…that's…" A pillow came from the corner of the room knocking the girl off her balance. She regarded her father and he lifted an eyebrow in question. The young boy on the other hand had burst out laughing as his sister fumed at him.

"Alright, that's enough. Get out of here and give us some peace for once." Katara rushed over to her children and began to scoot them out.

"But mom! You have to hurry they're almost here!" The girl kept talking as she was shoved unceremoniously from the room. The boy followed quietly offering his mom a shy smile.

As the door locked Katara turned back to Zuko and walked towards him. The Fire Lord threw a pillow on the ground and stood up to meet her halfway. He took her wrists into his hands. He leaned down and kissed her neck.

"Now where were we? Oh right." With that he scooped her off her feet and dropped her on to the bed and crawled after her. She put up her hands to try to keep him from advancing, her body growing weak from laughing so hard.

"Zuko! Come on we have to get ready." She shoved him off and finally groaning he got off on his side of the bed and went over to his wardrobe. Katara glared at him a bit miffed at his reaction. She shook her head and giggled slightly.

"How could you still be so hot for me after that interruption?" She asked trying to suppress her laughter as she spoke. Zuko turned around arching an eyebrow.

"Darling, in case you didn't notice whenever you're around I'm always hot." He cast off a sly smile in her direction and put his hands up just in time to catch a stray pillow that had managed to launch itself towards his face.

When he removed it from his grasp she had already turned her back to the screen where she could begin changing. He shook his head and reached for his own wardrobe to change.

* * *

Within the hour the Fire Lord and Lady had entered the breakfast room. There they saw four children fidgeting in their seats next to their grandfather.

"Mom, Dad, what took you so long? They could be here any minute!" The girl from before shouted.

"Maya stop it, we have plenty of time. They won't even make port for at least another few hours." The eldest boy looked up and smiled coyly. Katara came up to them and sat down, letting her robes ripple across her legs. Zuko followed his partner.

The eldest son, Lee, had entered his sixteenth year and he had become as handsome and strong as his father by that age. He was developing into a master firebender and had been practicing lightning bending for some time. Unlike his father he had a much happier disposition. He was more care-free and open minded than his father had been but it was obvious the family resemblance was strong in him. At the moment he had pulled his black hair back into a ponytail and his golden eyes flickered across the room catching the light of the torches as it went. His skin was pale like his father's and he wore a red and gold tunic and trousers as he lounged around.

The girl next to him was smaller next to her growing brother. At fourteen Rina was considered a beauty of the Fire Nation. Her looks mirrored her mother's the complete opposite of her older brother. When she looked up she had the sweetest blue eyes and her brown hair fell past her shoulders. The only thing that differed from her mother was how straight her hair was. It fell down her back like a waterfall. She preferred the traditional blue colors of her mother's people, but today she wore a rich dark blue robe. She was strong and independent for her age but she had a more womanly quality to her that set her apart. She carried herself elegantly and gracefully which is the main reason she had become the object of many a man's desire and she relished in the attention it offered her.

Her sister next to her, on the other hand, was almost the complete opposite. Maya tended to be more of a tomboy and despite her older sister's insistences, she never tired of trousers. It often became the object of heated discussions as the two girls were so oddly different.

The youngest child Tenu was, as he had been from birth, a very quiet child. He was a waterbender as was obvious from his looks and mannerisms. And just like his oldest sister he was seen as the object of attraction for the young ladies. Even at the young age of ten he had a swift way of capturing the young girls' attention. He had matured much faster than all the other boys his age which made him a prime target for attraction. To top it all off he had dark brown curls that made him look exotic and unique.

Katara and Zuko definitely had their work cut out for them keeping their children in line. Lee was ambitious and firm. Rina was very sly and intelligent. Maya was courageous and tough, whereas Tenu was quiet and contemplative. All the kids had such very different personalities sometimes it was hard to tell that they were related at all.

Iroh looked up regarding the family thoughtfully.

"So children are you excited to be seeing your cousin again?" Maya sat up instantly. Of all the people in the world she favored her cousin the most. Rina merely rolled her eyes and Lee took another bite out of his food. Tenu was quiet as always.

"Well I bet you can't wait to see Uncle Sokka and Aunt Suki. They haven't been to the Fire Nation since Lee was born." Katara herself was full of excitement at seeing her brother and sister in law. Zuko, on the other hand, avoided the conversation entirely.

"Hey dad, are we going to train today?" Lee, the oldest, regarded his father. Katara had noticed how hooked Lee was on his father. His father was a model for him and sometimes she wondered if Zuko noticed how much Lee replicated him in almost every way.

"Well for now we will hold off on training since your uncle and aunt are going to be here soon, but maybe sometime later today. Until then, I have some work to do so call me when they get here." With that Zuko stood up and kissed Katara on the cheek ruffling Tenu's hair as he went.

"What are you going to do dad?" Lee asked hurriedly. Rina looked up watching Lee with interest.

"If you want to come you may, but hurry up." Lee shoved the last of his meal down his throat and followed after his dad quickly. When he was gone Rina looked up to her mother. Katara smiled after her son and husband.

"He grows more like Zuko every day." Iroh said happily.

"Sometimes I wonder whether that's a good thing or a bad thing." Katara responded knowingly, a smile alit on her face.

"Well I'm not going to stay here, bored out of my mind. I'll see you guys later." Maya shifted and stood up brushing off her trousers. Katara looked up thoughtfully.

"Don't get too dirty, you want to look somewhat presentable when your cousin gets here." The preteen just gave a grin and rushed off without responding. Katara sighed and shook her head.

"You know saying things like that is futile, mother. It's just going to make her want to do it more." Rina's voice was mature and melodic over the course, deeper voice of her sister. Katara could not help but roll her eyes.

"It gives me something to reprimand her on later. Well I'm off. I need to make sure last minute preparations have been made. Rina why don't you come help me." The teenager rolled her eyes and got up following her mother stoically. Iroh looked over at Tenu and they both shrugged.


	2. Chapter 2

Maya looked up from her rhino. It had been a gift from her parents last year for her birthday and had come in handy on more than one occasion. For now she had used it to scale the cliffs so she could see the ship first. When a dark cloud came in to view, a sign of a Fire Navy ship she almost fell off her rhino in excitement, before racing back to the palace to alert her family.

The palace was quiet as it usually was when the royal children were busy but as Maya came running through it caused a sudden disruption. Servants jumped out of the way quickly trying to avoid being trampled. Maya, never the most graceful of children had been known on more than one occasion to bump into a servant and send them hurtling to the floor. Thankfully only a few minor injuries occurred, none of them ever to the young princess.

Maya's first stop was her grandfather's tea room. As Iroh was much older now, the girl knew it would take him the move, so she had to tell him first or he would never be on time. Inside the hot room, Iroh and Tenu had busied themselves with a game of Pai Sho.

"Grandpa, Tenu, come on they're here. I just saw their ship!" Tenu looked up at his sister and he and Iroh both began to get up and follow Maya out. Maya wasted no time with her grandfather and brother and ran to find her mother. She raced along the halls asking servants if they had seen them. One finally pointed towards the guest apartments and she almost ran into her mother and sister as she turned a corner. They were speaking to some servants about the rooms her family would be staying in, when the young princess came flying towards them. It was all they could do to get out of the way as Maya tried to stop in time.

"Mom, they're here! Come on, leave that alone!" Maya's excitement made Rina roll her eyes. Katara was catching her breath and helped Rina stand up from being knocked over.

"Maya we'll be there soon, go bother someone else." Rina scowled at her sister. Maya returned the scowl and stuck out her tongue with a smile because she knew Rina would stick up her nose.

"Priss."

"Boy!" Rina countered.

"I wish!" Maya grinned and turned away.

"Disgusting!" Rina scowled.

"Rina, that's enough!" Katara scolded. Rina clamped her mouth shut with a defiant scowl still on her face. Katara began to finish up her instructions to the head servants before she too went off after Maya to head to the port.

Meanwhile Maya hurried around the palace and headed towards her dad's study where she knew her father and Lee would be. She knocked on the door obediently aware of her father's temper at being disturbed.

She fidgeted impatiently until she heard her father's voice allowing her entrance. She hurried in and saw her father studiously looking over scrolls with her brother next to him.

"Dad! They're here! Come on I saw them, they should be here any minute." Zuko looked up aware of his daughter's impatience.

"Let us finish these protocols first Maya. Lee and I will be down there soon." Maya groaned and rushed out knowing it futile to fight with her dad.

As she rushed out she saw her komodo rhinoceros waiting for her and hopped on and raced down to the ports to welcome her family. When she got there she was upset to see the rest of her family had not arrived.

Within minutes her grandfather and brother arrived talking amongst themselves. Not too much longer her sister and mother arrived. Her father and brother on the other hand did not arrive until right before the ship docked.

As the ship docked Maya jumped up to see her family. When the ship did dock, she waited impatiently for her cousin to climb off. After another few minutes of waiting she heard a distinct voice.

"Neea! Be careful!" Her aunt's voice rung through her head and instead of staying still like the rest of her family she ran ahead to hug her cousin as she got off the ship. Her cousin had the frame and features of her mother but her hair was a straight dark brown and her eyes were a beautiful light blue like her father's. Over all she had her mother's fierce spirit. As such she often cut her hair short to just below her chin. Today she did not wear her traditional Kyoshi outfit but during training she often adorned the heavy gear. This Maya even took part in when her aunt was in town. She loved the fierce Kyoshi spirit, something she sometimes associated herself with more.

Neea hugged her cousin thoughtfully both grinning mischievously their thoughts contemplating what trouble they could get into. As they looked back they saw Suki and Sokka greeting the family.

"Sokka!" Katara yelled and hugged her brother thoughtfully. When they broke away Sokka and Zuko regarded each other generally with a firm handshake.

"Did you have a good trip?" Zuko asked of his bother-in-law.

"Ya, you could say so. Poor Neea almost went nuts in anticipation." Zuko and Sokka grinned knowingly as they stared at their daughters.

"Be lucky you only have one!" It was almost unreal to see them acting so cordial when over twenty years ago they would have been at each other's throats. Katara only had to smile and shake her head at her new life as she and Suki corralled the kids on to the komodo rhinos so they could head towards the palace.

* * *

Over dinner the whole family caught up on news and events that had been going on. Meanwhile Maya and Neea giggled in the corner. Rina elbowed her sister more than once to make them stop making so much noise.

"Shut up you two. I can't hear a word that anyone's saying." Rina called to her two juvenile relations. Maya scowled at her older sister.

"Priss!" Maya called sticking her tongue out. Instantly Rina reached over and pinched her sister on the arm. The girl cried out in alarm and pain and Lee looked over and glared at them.

"Will you keep it down!" He whispered harshly.

"She started it!" Maya called louder than she should have. Lee scowled when he noticed his father's eyes wonder to them and narrow in warning. The conversation had gotten quiet and they knew Zuko was getting annoyed when Katara placed a gentle hand on her husband's forearm and cast them a warning glare. It said 'one more outburst and I'm not going to hold him back!'

They were quiet through the rest of dinner.

* * *

Afterwards they broke up into groups. Lee and Tenu were eager to show their uncle all they had learned in swords training. Maya was excited to watch Neea train with her mother and Katara still had waterbending lessons to instruct her children in. They all got up and dressed in lighter outfits for training.

The waterbending room provided more ample space for them to conduct their training with relative privacy. It had been constructed with concrete walls and Zuko and his engineers had especially designed a waterfall like oasis with plumbing to pump the water through the ground. It included a ring to practice in. As for now Katara stood by the waterfall with Rina assisting her. Maya, Neea and Suki were clothed in Kyoshi warrior outfits standing in the ring and Zuko, Sokka, Tenu and Lee were nearby a bench area were they had a selection of weapons chained to the wall. Taking a key from his trousers Zuko unlocked the weapons from there pegs on the wall. Sokka was unsheathing his onyx blade from its leather sheath and showing it to Tenu who admired it with wide eyes.

Lee grabbed the double blades, his favorite of the weapons and began going through some stretches and positions with them. Sokka swished his blade around a bit and then pointed it at Lee in challenge. Zuko put a hand on Tenu to drag him back out of the way protectively.

Sokka was the first to move. He was moving slowly testing his nephew's abilities first, his own somewhat rusted. They sparred for a moment Lee countering every attack easily. Zuko watched from the sidelines judging his son's abilities. For the most part Lee practiced with Zuko and the only downfall was that he became too used to his father's moves. To take it up Zuko encouraged him to train with other boys and young men in training with the army to help build his reflexes.

Once they had adjusted each other's abilities Sokka and Lee began moving faster their dance becoming more aggressive. Katara and Rina stepped closer to watch and even the other girls had stopped to watch in excitement. They seemed almost matched in abilities, so long was their endless dance. It wasn't until Lee made a mistake did Sokka take the opportunity to kick the balance out from under his nephew and land him on the ground a sword to his chest. With all due fun, the grinning uncle helped his nephew up.

"That was quite impressive Lee. Zuko has been teaching you well. I see you use the double blades. I don't know if you've ever heard of the Blue Spirit, but he was said to have caused quite some havoc around the world with a pair of double blades." Lee grinned at his uncle missing the knowing look that passed between Katara and Zuko. Even Rina straightened in realization as she looked over to her father.

"Ya Uncle Aang used to tell us about him. I doubt he's real though." Sokka stopped and laughed.

"Your Uncle Aang saw him for himself. He must have been real. 'Terrorizer of the Fire Nation,' they called him." Lee turned to his father at his uncle's words.

"Dad, did you ever hear of the Blue Spirit" Zuko waved it off.

"In passing of course, but I was doing a lot of traveling at the time and missed a lot of news." Lee looked a little disconcerted for a time before he turned his attention to his youngest sister and cousin.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Hey everyone! I hope everyone is enjoying the story so far. I did get one question on the ages of everyone in the story at this time. So I would be happy to give a little bit more background. I'll start with the characters who have so far been presented. The adults are more of an approximate age.**

**Zuko: 38, Sokka and Suki: 37, Katara: 36, Lee: 16, Rina: 14, Maya and Neea: 12, Tenu: 10**

**About Iroh's age: On Avatar Wiki, Iroh is listed as around 64 during the series but I find that a little hard to believe so I always pictured him to be in his 50s during the series. That would put him in his 70s in this story.**

* * *

"Alright Maya, show me what you got. Here pair up with Neea." Aunt Suki was always an impressive figure when she dressed as a Kyoshi warrior. But after settling down and starting a family she was only able to adorn her traditional cloth rarely. But when she did, she was an awesome sight. With these images in mind, Neea had grown up knowing she would one day become a Kyoshi warrior as well. She was sent often to train on her mother's home island just for such an occasion. There she formed bonds of sisterhood with other girls, but the bond she held for Maya her cousin was even deeper. The girls never ceased to be apart when they visited each other.

Thus it was interesting to watch them spar. Maya wholly unused to fans was clumsy and untrained while Neea's skills were far more honed and dangerous. But the girls were still far from comparing with Suki.

"Neea, tone it down. Maya doesn't know everything yet. Take it slow." This wasn't the first time Suki had to scold Neea for being too rough with her cousin. But the scolding only made Maya's cheeks turn red in shame. She wanted so much to be on equal footing with her cousin, but without her bending she had very little skill to offer her. Her impatience always had gotten the best of her when it came to training and it had been one of the problems her Masters had trouble dealing with on a daily basis.

But the girls were hard to back down and they fought each other ferociously. As Neea came at Maya harder and faster, Maya stumbled back overwhelmed and throwing her arms up in front of her, she got hit by one of Neea's fans.

"Neea! Stop now!" Suki ran to Maya who cradled her arm defiantly. She refused to cry at the pain but her eyes were watering visibly. Neea stopped realizing she had hurt her cousin and shamefully backed away. Katara came up to her daughter in the ring and Zuko came up to.

"Here let me look at it. Well it isn't too deep. Rina, why don't you come up here and practice your healing." Katara called to her oldest daughter who climbed into the ring bringing a flask of water with her and some bandages handled by her father.

She opened the flask and taking a deep breath the waterbender began to pulse the water out of the clean wound. Since it was so fresh it was easy to heal. Rina arched an eyebrow examining her work thoroughly with a perfectionist attitude. She smirked a bit at a job well done and stood up.

Maya sneered at her arm now healed, feeling ashamed at having gotten the cut in the first place. Neea came over and offered her a hand up.

"Sorry, guess I got a little too rough."

"It's okay, I should have watched out more carefully." The girls consented at their mistakes and turned back to regard their mothers.

"Hey Lee, up for a challenge?" A water whip flew through the air gracefully and whacked itself against Lee's head gently enough to get his attention, but obnoxious enough to get his temper. Lee turned to his sister and growled.

"Leave me alone Rina. We already know I can beat you." Another bit of water shoved up against him.

"Scared?" She teased. He growled some more and Katara and Zuko became very attentive to the two siblings.

"Not at all. Let's just leave it at 'I'm better.' No need to embarrass you." He jeered back to her. The girl lifted her head up higher and shoved some water back at him still coaxing his anger into a fight.

"Rina, cut it out!" He yelled furiously.

"Make me, big brother!" She replied her tone taking on a sarcastic form. Finally his hands filled with fire and he regarded his sister. Zuko and Katara stepped forward to watch. It had been a while since they had seen the kids put their abilities up against each other. Secretly they were hoping for their own student to win, although they would never voice it out loud.

Rina and Lee took their stances and suddenly a very vicious battle ensued. They were equally matched in skill. Although Rina was younger she was highly skilled and a very quick learner. Even at the South Pole she had excelled past the native pupils.

As they fought it out the onlookers noticed the energy the prodigies were expelling. They were both extremely determined and neither would give up until the other lost. As everyone watched Sokka came up beside Katara and Zuko their mouths dropped open.

"Look at them," Sokka whispered, "They're exactly like you guys when you were young. I can't believe how much they're like you." Zuko and Katara regarded each other as memories came back and they shook their heads wandering what hell they had committed to pit their children against each other so cruelly.

Finally at one point Rina pulled a new move from her repertoire and caught Lee off guard but not before he managed to counter it at the last second. It was obvious both of them were wearing down.

"Zuko, they're going to hurt themselves if we let them keep at it." Zuko turned to Katara and looked towards their youngest kids. Katara found where his gaze wandered and noticed how studiously their other children watched their siblings.

"Give it a moment more." Zuko responded. Katara watched on helplessly as she saw her children pushing themselves to the limit. Neither of them would stop and she could slowly see their powers building too far beyond their control.

"Zuko!" She yelled at him, but he held up a hand. The kids fighting became fiercer as if on cue. Katara took a step forward and Zuko held her back with one arm. She looked at him incredibly.

"Zu…" There was a loud crack and it caused the kids to jump back scared.

"Now." Zuko said quietly. Without a second thought before the kids could attack themselves again she cast out the ice freezing them both in place before they could blink.

Unfortunately Lee's body was too hot and the ice melted so quickly he charged forward. Rina too had bended the water off of her not even thinking of the consequences. They were too focused on each other to remember the people who watched them.

With anger across his features Zuko stepped forward and raised up a wall of fire between his quarreling children.

"Enough you two!" Both of them stepped back from the flames, realization slowly spreading across their faces as to whom stood before them. Both of them backed away carefully. Slowly Katara came and stepped in between them as well.

As the two teenagers walked away from each other grudgingly Katara turned to Zuko.

"What the hell do you think you were doing letting them at each other like that?" Zuko disregarded her and instead looked around himself. She became even more furious and within her peripheral vision she could see Sokka and Suki backing away hesitantly.

"Zuko! Answer me? Do you want to see your kids kill each other? Look, just because you and your own sister were raised that way doesn't mean…" Zuko looked up at her with a glare that could silence a raging komodo rhino. He walked closer to her, extremely close so that the heat that was emanating off him was intoxicating.

"Don't even go there Katara." With that he backed away from her and crouched on to the ground. He waved her over. She took a deep breath and went to his side knowing she had pushed his limits of patience.

"Look at this crack. This is what I was waiting for." He pointed to a thin crack not much longer than a string of hair and not much bigger than that but it was sizeable enough for a coin to slip through.

"You were waiting for a crack?" She asked. He only nodded and examined it closer.

"This concrete is tough but when it heats up it expands and when it is cold it contracts. The extreme temperatures between Lee and Rina caused this crack very prematurely by excessive expanding and contracting. It would seem they are a lot more powerful than we had originally gave them credit for." Katara wondered at her husband for a while feeling oddly distant from him at the moment. Yet at the same time she was amazed at the lengths her children had reached in so short a time. They were truly powerful benders.

Zuko turned to Katara and the corners of his mouth twitched. She eyed him suspiciously wandering what was going through his mind.

"What are you thinking?" She asked quietly.

"I want to know just how powerful they are. Let's see if we can't get them to fight us." He smiled a little broader and her eyes got wide.

"But Zuko, they're exhausted. They would never be able to keep up their strength. Not after that!" She responded still in hushed tones.

"True. Let them rest and regain their strength. Besides I don't expect this to be a match of power, but one of wits and collaboration. I want to see how well they would do as a team. It may be a very important lesson for them." Katara narrowed her eyes in understanding. They needed to be taught a lesson but they decided to keep it quiet for now. They would surprise their kids at the end of their training session.

For the remainder of the time while Lee and Rina cooled off Tenu and Maya showed off their bending a bit. Although it wasn't nearly up to par with their siblings they were still quite good. When the older siblings returned they were apt to offer advice as if they were superior benders. Meanwhile Katara and Zuko watched in anticipation.

As Sokka and Suki were about to retire, Zuko stopped them.

"Hold on guys, I want you to stay for one last thing. Lee, Rina come here. Your mother and I have a challenge for you." With that Zuko took off his robe so he would be bare-chested and Katara relinquished her robe for her training bindings. They stared at their kids in challenge.

"We want you to defeat us. You showed yourselves powerful opponents against yourselves but what about against us. You think your bending abilities can match ours?" Katara asked urging her children in the challenge. Tenu and Maya stared on in anticipation.

Rina and Lee stared at each other disgusted at the thought of working together. Then they stared back at their parents gauging their strength.

"Well what's it going to be? Think you can handle us now?" Zuko jeered at them. Sokka crossed his arms slowly, his mind quickly calculating the outcome.

"Come on mom, we both know I've beaten you more than once." Rina stated all too ambitiously. Katara arched an eyebrow.

"Oh yeah, prove it to me. Both of you against us. If you think you can handle it, that is." Rina stared at her brother and their looks both became determined. They knew they would never live it down if they turned down the match.

Finally acquiescing, the two went off to the side and started talking to each other. Zuko and Katara only shared a look, to let them at least have the opportunity to strategize. Finally they took of their robes and Rina tied her hair back loosely so it wouldn't get in the way. They took their stances Rina in front of Katara and Lee in front of Zuko.

Before getting into his stance Zuko called over to Sokka.

"Hey Sokka why don't you ref for us. What are the rules?" Sokka considered the honor for a moment and then smiled.

"Whichever team gets knocked down first, I say." Zuko gave an amused look.

"Fair enough." He turned back to Katara passing a knowing look to each other as they each got into their stances. Zuko looked at Sokka and nodded.

"Alright when I catch my boomerang, you can begin." With that Sokka threw his trusty boomerang into the air and waited for it to return to him.


	4. Chapter 4

Lee and Rina were the first to move, badly out of sync, and Katara and Zuko countered them easily. They sparred with their teenagers and as Sokka watched amused, he felt a shove against his shoulder.

"What's so funny? They seem to be getting really angry." Suki asked her husband. Sokka leaned over and pointed at the match thoughtfully.

"Look at them. Zuko and Katara haven't even broken a sweat, they're toying with them. They are easily blocking and just barely bending enough to put up a fight. Give it a moment, they are teaching their kids a lesson." No sooner had he spoken, Katara and Zuko shared a split second look.

Automatically they switched targets. Katara went after her son freezing his feet. The boy burned through the ice easily but when Zuko swept in with a blast from his feet the boy lost balance and Katara finished him off sweeping her water under his toes and putting him off balance. Lee fell flat on his back with an audible thump. The parents soon focused their attention on their daughter. Katara threw down some icicles just barely missing the girl's feet as she took a step backward. Rina countered bringing the water up from around her feet and using the famous water whip. Zuko flashed his fire directly in front of her face hitting the water and causing steam to block her vision. Then her mother tipped it off with a splash of water directly to her chest.

The girl had barely gained control of the water around her when she fell back tripping unceremoniously over her brother who still lay on the floor. The siblings stared at each other in shame at having lost so easily. Katara and Zuko merely offered a smile as they came over to help their children up. In the background their audience gave quiet cheers.

"The most important lesson you will ever learn is that power is nothing without strategy. You must not only expect the moves of your opponent but the moves of others around you. By failing to work as a team you were both easily defeated." Zuko commented as he helped Rina and Lee stand. They both looked at him distrustfully.

"You planned this!" Rina shouted at her father.

"Take your lesson with humility. Be lucky your life did not depend on it this time, or it would have been a harder lesson to learn." Rina stared back at him indignantly and stormed off. Lee only looked at his father with an expression that was blank and he followed after his sister.

"Lee, before you go, I want to talk to you." Lee stopped in his tracks and turned around obediently. Zuko had grabbed a towel and was wiping his chest from all the sweat as he stared down at his son who was just a bit shorter than him and still growing.

"Tomorrow I want you to meet me in the dome. I think you are ready to begin learning to train like a real master." Lee's eyes widened as he heard this but still he regarded his father with a blank stare and nodding he went off on his own.

Katara came to Zuko's side adjusting her robe slightly.

"Zuko, you don't think we were too hard on them, do you?" Zuko shook his head slipping his tunic on to his frame.

"I would rather be blamed for having taught them this lesson myself then get the blame for not having taught them early enough when they may have needed it the most." Katara shook her head at her husband and placed a hand on his warm biceps.

"Sometimes I think we are too harsh with them. We both grew up in a time of war and at that time these lessons were necessary to save our lives. We are no longer at war, Zuko. Do you think it wise to treat them as if we still are?" Katara's voice was soft in hushed undertones and Zuko stopped for a second thinking her words over.

"I would rather them be prepared and never have to use their skills than be in trouble and not know what to do." Katara sighed and turned away form him, knowing it useless to fight on the subject. She followed her brother and sister-in-law out of the room and separated to go to bed.

Zuko didn't come to bed for a little while longer, so deeply engrossed in his thoughts was he.

When he entered his room, he saw Katara already asleep and slowly he stealthily crossed the floor to his wardrobe where there was a secret compartment. From it he took out his blue ogre mask. He had had another one created in secret after he had thrown his first one out. Something about the mask would always call to him and he had kept it all these years. Carefully he wiped the dust off of it. Holding the mask brought back memories of a harder time and he clutched it tighter as if trying to hold on to the past.

* * *

The children had all grown up with stories of their parent's adventures. More so their mother's than their father's. But sometimes late at night when Katara sat in the girls' room with Lee and Tenu at her side, Zuko would stand in the shadows of the doorway and listen to the vibrant stories she spoke of. The children envied their parents for these miraculous adventures, it was a time so foreign to them and yet not so distant. But now that they had gotten older, Katara never told those stories anymore. But still they kept them alive in their hearts.

"Ok, I'll be the evil general Zhao and you can be the Avatar." Maya said to Neea in the garden. The two girls reenacted the event as Maya reached into the turtleduck pond and pulled a turtleduck out.

"See look I have captured Tui, the spirit of the moon. Pretend like everything is going dark." With a lot of swishing sounds Neea pretended like the air bending Avatar and got up on her tip toes and arched her arms high over her head to pretend like she had entered the Avatar state. She swooshed her arms knocking "Zhao" over. Maya pretended to be scared and screamed and pretended to be dead. As the two girls looked at each other and laughed they looked around.

"Wait this isn't right. Tui is supposed to dead. We need princess Yue to save us!" Neea called. They looked around and their eyes settled on Rina not too far away reading a book.

"Rina! Come play with us, we need someone to be Princess Yue." The teenager looked up at them sarcastically.

"Can't one of you pretend to be her?" She asked with a groan.

"No, Neea is the Avatar and I'm General Zhao. I'm dead, I can't be Yue. Come on she was your favorite character to play when you were little!" Rina sighed and got up to play with them. She played lazily though and her sister scowled.

"No! You're doing it wrong. Come on, Yue had to give up her people to become a spirit. At least shed a few tears." Rina groaned.

"Look if you don't like how I play then why'd you pull me over here in the first place?" Maya sighed.

"Forget it, you're too old and boring now to have fun." Maya scolded her older sister. Rina knitted her brows together.

"That's not true! I just find better enjoyment in other things." She lifted her nose in the air in defiance to prove her point.

"Forget it! These stupid stories aren't true anyways." With that Maya sat down disappointed. Neea looked at her in astonishment.

"But they are true. My dad knew Princess Yue! He really did. She had to be real if he knew her!"

"He probably just made her up!"

"No he didn't!"

"Maya, you know Mom never lies. All the stories are true. Even the legend of the Blue spirit is true." Rina said to her sister. Maya shook her head exasperated.

"How would you know? Did you ever see him?" She yelled at her older sister. Rina just crossed her arms defiantly.

"Actually yes I did, as a matter of fact!"

"Liar!"

"Fine Maya be like that. If you're going to be such a know-it-all I don't think Neea and I want to play with you. Come on Neea." With that Rina stood up and stormed away. Neea looked at Maya hesitantly and then followed Rina reluctantly.

Maya was quiet for a bit and didn't say anything. Suddenly she heard footsteps behind her and looked over to see Lee come and sit down beside her.

"Hey." He said quietly.

"Hey."

"So what's up?" He said nudging her a bit.

"Rina was being mean!" She spit out all of the sudden. He moved a bit surprised but then adjusted and smiled.

"You two are just so different, that's all." He faced her smiling and she felt a little better. She had always been able to talk to Lee and Tenu. They were just so much easier to understand than her sister. Rina had grown up so fast and left her sister behind so quickly, Maya had no chance of ever catching up.

"Hey Lee wanna go steal one of the guard's komodo rhinos?" Lee looked a bit quizzical but Maya's mind had already started to form her plan.

"Come on, hurry. I know one that will be patrolling soon." From out of her pocket she pulled a sling shot and running past some rocks picked one up in her hand.

"Maya! No!" She heard Lee calling after her, but it was the fun of getting rid of her brother that made it all worthwhile.


	5. Chapter 5

Maya was known for being stealthy and she loved her pranks. It made life so much more entertaining in the girl's eyes. She knew Lee wouldn't be able to find her in time. He wasn't as stealthy.

She looked ahead scanning her territory from behind some bushes and saw a guard and komodo rhino thumping along. Gleefully the little girl smiled and crawled closer to the massive komodo rhino, the guard's idle attention oblivious to the predator. She snuck up close and then picked her sling shot out of her pocket. She had a stone at hand and then stealthily aimed, closing one eye and sticking her tongue out as she did so.

"Maya, no!" She jumped and turned but not before she released the stone forcefully and watched mystified as it hit its target. The guard had turned looking unsuspecting and screamed as the komodo rhino lurched. The massive beast shook its driver off easily and thundered around the garden. Maya watched mesmerized and her eyes widened as she realized the komodo rhino's path was heading straight for her.

The little girl froze unable to move and suddenly felt something smash into her hard. She felt her body collapse against the hard ground as thunder rang in her ears. When it began to dissipate she felt the weight on her shift. She looked over and saw her brother. He was already moving going after the rhino. Not wanting to be left behind Maya followed.

Then she saw where the komodo rhino headed, towards the palace. Gardeners and maids ducked out of the way screaming and soon there was the sound of stone cracking as the rampaging beast hit a wall.

Maya kept an eye on Lee's back as they rushed ahead and then the rhino was cornered and began to circle around and head back for Lee and Maya. This time they were trapped as the komodo rhino was much faster and stronger.

Maya stared as her brother ran towards her, the fear obvious in his eyes and he took hold of her hand and then the rumbling stopped. The beast roared in anguish and the two children turned around. There Rina stood arms outstretched the sweat dripping off her brow. Her whole body was tense in a form very new to them.

Her arms swung up overhead and the water pulled itself out of the grass and swam around the komodo rhino. She kept pulling the water out further and further freezing the rhino's hooves in place. The ice began to grow along the hooves up towards the legs and knees and on to the soft underbelly of the beast. She gulped and stayed holding the beast in place. Suddenly guards surrounded them with nets to tie the beast down as Rina began to grow weak. Suddenly Katara's soft hand rested on her shoulder.

"You can let go now Rina." She said so softly it sounded like the wind. Rina dropped her arms and her whole body sagged as Katara caught her limply in her arms. Suddenly the whole family was there and Maya cowered as she saw her father beside her mother helping Rina. A look passed between them they couldn't quite see and Zuko took his daughter into his arms to carry her away.

Their parents whispered softly to Rina trying to let her sleep and Maya suddenly felt envious of her perfect sister. Suddenly she realized people would start looking towards her and she began to back up slowly.

Before she could run away Lee grabbed her arm, a look of anger alit on his features.

"Oh no, you're not getting away that easy! Come on." He dragged her behind him and suddenly she was scared. She felt tears flowing down her cheeks hotly and her brother's burning grip only tightened unafraid of her. She struggled against her older brother's grip but she couldn't muster the strength.

Suddenly they saw their grandfather in view and Lee dragged her over to Iroh in a hurry.

"Go on Maya, tell him what you did!" Lee shouted angrily. He released his grip pushing her forward as his eyes narrowed dangerously. Iroh looked down confused at his grandchildren waiting for some explanation.

"Maya tell him!" Lee shouted. Iroh shushed the boy and bent down rigidly to the shaking girl. Tears streamed down her cheeks as the old man's eyes regarded her.

"What is it you wanted to tell me Maya?" The old man's voice was soft and soothing but it only made Maya shake more as she began to sob. Iroh embraced his granddaughter into a hug shushing her as Lee crossed his arms a look of concern growing on his features.

"Grandpa! I did it! It's all my fault! I didn't mean for anyone to get hurt! I didn't mean it, honest!" She cried harder into his shoulder and he hugged her tighter. When her tears began to lessen a bit he stood her back a bit to get a good look at her.

"Don't worry. No one was seriously hurt. Why don't you two come join me for some tea real quick, to calm your nerves? After that then we can talk to your parents. Come on now, I just made a pot a little while ago. It should still be warm." He took the girl by the hand and she followed along humbly. Lee followed behind a little more worried about what was going to happen when their parents found out.

* * *

"You did what?" Katara yelled as she stared at her daughter. Maya sniffled a bit, the tears rolling down her cheeks already. Iroh and Lee stood helpless in the background as Katara stared at her daughter. Zuko stood behind his wife, strangely silent.

"What were you thinking Maya? Someone could have been hurt! If Rina had not been there to stop the komodo rhino, somebody could have died! Of all the irresponsible things you could have done!" At every word the little girl flinched, Iroh flinched and Lee flinched. Katara ranted on like that for a little while longer until Maya finally buried her face in her hands and cried harder.

"I'm sorry Mommy! I didn't mean for anything bad to happen." At this point Zuko took a step forward and waved Iroh and Lee away. The two snuck out slowly taking one last look at the poor girl.

As they left, Zuko took his daughter in his arms and sat down on one of the benches bringing his daughter closer. He let her cry her peace and gave Katara a look. They seemed to share conversations with just glances now, so attuned to each others thinking. Slowly her mother came over on the other side of her daughter and hugged her too shushing her as she did.

"Come on Maya, hush. Everything's alright." Maya sniffled in her mother's arms and looked up again still frightened.

"You're not mad anymore?" Their daughter asked. Katara's mouth thinned a bit at this as her daughter stared up at her with wide golden eyes.

"Well what you did was wrong, but I hope you understand now how dangerous something like that can be. Even if you don't mean any harm." Katara said softly. Maya sat up a bit straighter feeling a bit better about the situation. She turned to Zuko suddenly her head turning back and forth between her parents.

"So does this mean I'm grounded?" The corners of Zuko's mouth twitched expectantly.

"Yes for at least a month and as some added punishment I want you to help the komodo rhino caretakers for just as long. I'll speak to them tomorrow and you will do whatever they ask you to do without complaining. Is that understood?" Her father's strict voice caught her attention and she grimaced at having to take care of the komodo rhinos already aware of how smelly they were. She wrinkled her nose at the thought. Zuko lifted an eyebrow waiting for a response and she nodded solemnly.

"Why don't you go see Grandpa for a while. I'm sure he would like someone to play some Pai Sho with." Katara's smoothing voice calmed her daughter as she sniffled a bit trying to dry the last of her tears. Maya nodded and left the spot of warmth between her parents and walked slowly out the door.

As the door shut behind their daughter Katara let out a small sigh and her body relaxed a bit as she put a hand on her head.

"You alright?" Zuko asked worried at how tired she was.

"Ya, I'm fine. It's just this whole situation is such a mess." Zuko took her into his arms warming her as he did so. They sat there in silence for a bit before the quiet was broken.

"Maybe what you and I need is a little vacation, away from the kids. Maybe some time alone together would brighten your spirits. I can't remember the last time we were alone without one of our brats running around." Katara smiled at his grin and she looked into his golden eyes, the eyes she had become so used to, in the face of her husband and children.

"Do you really think we could leave them alone without them getting into trouble? Somehow I highly doubt it." Katara said a bit exasperated, but with more energy in her voice. Suddenly the look in Zuko's eyes became a bit more interested in his wife and he wrapped her tighter in his arms.

"I don't know. Wouldn't you like some time alone with me? We could go anywhere, be anywhere, _do_ anything. Imagine a week away from the kids, no interruptions, no responsibilities!" He purred into her ear letting a sly smile slide on to her lips. He bent and kissed her forcing some more heat on her. She wasn't sure but she could almost hear a low growl in his throat as he began to kiss her down her neck and on to her shoulder. She gasped as she felt his teeth nip her seductively and began to laugh.

"Zuko!" She giggled as she felt him begin to pull the sides of her robes down. She had her hands in his hair her eyes catching the metallic glint of his crown in the sunlight.

Suddenly they both sat up at the sound of a knock at the door. Zuko turned to her with a groan and continued to kiss her neck ignoring the intrusion. She tried to back away and heard the knock again. This time Zuko backed off shooting his dirtiest look towards the door. Then with a glint of amusement he turned his head towards Katara. He took her hand in his and kissed it delicately.

"This is not over, my lady." He said sweetly with a look that meant it whole heartedly. It made her heart sink and she felt butterflies in her stomach as he said it. Then, smiling coyly she leaned into her husband and put her lips near his ear.

"I think that vacation sounds like a wonderful idea." She kissed him on his cheek and then got up away from his embrace to go open the door. As she went she patted down her hair and smoothed out her robes as Zuko did the same.

She gave him one last look before opening the door. Lee popped his head in to face his father and passed by his mother. Katara shut the door behind him and came over beside him.

"Did you want to see me?" Their son asked a bit meekly. Zuko and Katara exchanged a look showing they had completely forgotten and suddenly felt a little embarrassed at the fact.

"Uh, yes. Well your mother and I wanted to thank you for trying to watch after your sister. We both know how hard that can be." Zuko sputtered out. Lee brightened at this the fear of being in trouble washing away from him.

"And another thing, your mother and I will be leaving the Fire Nation soon, for about a week and I would like you to take over the responsibilities as Fire Lord, while I'm gone." Zuko smiled down at his son, his oldest, his heir, as the boy's mouth dropped open in astonishment. The look of shock and surprise on his face was evident. Smiling Zuko turned to Katara and saw the same mirror reaction on her face as well.

"Really Dad? You mean it?" At the look he got from Katara, Zuko cleared his throat a bit suddenly feeling a bit anxious.

"I believe you have shown yourself to be responsible enough and you will have advisors and your grandfather here of course to help you, should you need it." His son was still in shock and clearing his throat again he shooed him out of the room again. Lee left in excitement running off to tell anyone he could find. As soon as the door shut behind him, Katara turned to Zuko.


	6. Chapter 6

"What do you think you are doing?" Katara screamed. Zuko leaned back in his position looking up thoughtfully at Katara.

"Well if we are gone we need to leave someone in charge…"

"He's only sixteen!" She shouted. Zuko's eyes narrowed a bit in response.

"I was sixteen." He said dimly. Katara crossed her arms stiffly.

"You were 21 when you took that position and you know it."

"But I was sixteen when I ran the Fire Nation. I was practically Fire Lord in everything but name." He replied calmly.

"Zuko times were different then, we were at war! I can't believe you didn't discuss this with me first." Finally Zuko stood up fluidly and came to stand near Katara.

"I think he's ready for this, besides it is only for one week and Iroh and the advisors will be here to help him." He picked up her hand steadily and began to kiss her fingers. His soothing touch made her calm a little and she sighed in defeat. She realized how overprotective she was being and right now she did not feel like fighting with Zuko. He was too tempting to turn down as his kisses began to work up her arm slowly pulling her into his grip.

"Hello there you beautiful thing, what's your name?" He asked devilishly looking at her lovingly.

"Sorry, fella'. I've got a husband and kids." She replied playfully. He pouted in response to her teasing.

"Wow, he must be the luckiest man in the world to have such a beautiful woman as you." She laughed a bit and shook her head.

"Nah, I hardly ever see him. He's always so busy ruling the Fire Nation, I hardly get any time alone with him." He pulled her deeper into his embrace.

"Well I'm definitely going to have to fix that!" He said and kissed her more lovingly on the mouth. She broke away smiling.

"Zuko we really should go check on Rina." She said. He looked at her and nodded knowing the seriousness of the situation. She took his hand in her and led him away and down the hall towards Rina's room. After they began to grow older, Katara thought it best they should get their own room when it seemed that their personalities were highly incompatible for such a close living proximity.

* * *

They entered Rina's room, nicely decorated and perfect. She was a very neat and organized girl. She preferred the water tribe regalia hung around her room, proud of her heritage. As Zuko and Katara entered they saw Rina sitting up reading a scroll for her studies.

"Hey Rina, we just came to check up on you. How are you doing?" Rina looked up at her mother slowly and just shrugged.

"I'm fine I guess. Just working on my studies." She said quietly. Her eyes slwoly went from her mother back to her scroll.

"Rina, your father and I wanted to thank you for helping out today. We also wanted to tell you, that we will be going away for a bit, probably a week. So we would really appreciate it if you could keep an eye on your siblings. Lee will be too busy taking care for the Fire Nation while we're gone." Rina put her scroll down and sat up straighter.

"What? Why does Lee get to be in charge of the Fire Nation? Why can't I?" She asked suddenly getting annoyed. Lee and Katara sat up straighter surprised.

"Well it's not that we don't think you're capable but you've just never shown an interest in running the Fire Nation." Zuko said. Katara nodded in agreement.

"Well I don't want to be stuck watching the brats…"

"Rina! We just wanted to let you know what's going on that's all. Your grandfather will be here to help, of course, and so will the servants and everyone else. You will be in charge of the household while I am gone. As Lady of the house it will be your responsibility to keep everything neat and orderly." As Katara watched her daughter, Rina's expression became one of interest.

"So I will be in charge of the servants and the household?" Rina asked slyly.

"Well yes. We need someone to keep everyone in order while we are gone. I believe you know enough about it. You've always followed me around and helped when you got the chance. You should be fine." The pride in Katara's voice and eyes was unmistakable. Rina leaped into her mother's arms in a hug.

"But mom, where are you and dad going and…why?" Rina's eyebrow arched in question. Katara's cheeks turned pink as she blushed and Rina looked to her dad.

"Your mother and I are taking a little vacation that's all." He said simply. Suddenly Rina's smile broke into a grin.

"This wouldn't happen to be because Maya and Tenu walked on you two, when you were about to…." Katara shot up.

"Rina! You're father and I just need some alone time. It's been so long since we were on vacation and you children are old enough now that we should be able to trust you alone for a while." Katara said quickly changing the subject. Rina sized her parents up fairly.

"Alight, fine. I'll watch the household." She said diligently crossing her arms. Her mother sighed glad to have gotten the conversation over. As she got up to go to the door Zuko right behind her they stopped in the doorway.

"We'll be leaving in a few days. I'll be sure to let the servants know you will be in charge until we get back." As Katara went through the door, Zuko followed. Suddenly they rounded a corner and his hands were wrapped around her waist. He tenderly moved her against a wall his body pressing against hers. His head bent against the nape of her neck spreading kisses along her shoulders.

"Zuko! We do have a _private_ bedroom for these sorts of things." She whispered to him.

"Come on. Doesn't this excite you?" He growled into her ear.

"What if someone catches us?" Her eyes widened in embarrassment.

"Like who?" He continued to press against her.

"Like him." She said. Zuko stopped and tuned only to see his youngest staring straight up at him with eyes as wide as the moon. He turned back to Katara trying to stifle a groan. Her eyes narrowed and she pushed him off her. He straightened out his robes and she did the same. As Zuko turned back to his son he opened his mouth to speak and then closed it unsure of what to say. He tried again, still to no avail. Finally he just gave Katara a look and walked off quickly. She stared after him the anger clearly lit on her features. Suddenly she turned back to her son and sighed.

"Tenu, go back to your studies." The boy didn't even argue and ran off before she had to say anything more.

* * *

The morning came where Katara and Zuko would be leaving. Katara ran around in all due nervousness arranging everything at the last minute. As she ran around, Zuko had the children standing at the entrance in a line waiting. Lee was anxious to take over responsibilities as Fire Lord and Rina was anxious to be able to rearrange furniture. The youngest were anxious to finally get out from under their parent's eyes. Neea stood by them anxiously waiting as well.

As Zuko watched each of them he had never felt so proud. He heard some yelling behind him and rolled his eyes only to see Katara being far too overprotective. He looked back to the kids as they leaned over to look behind him out of curiosity. Slowly he turned around and grasped Katara's hand lovingly, stopping her dead in her tracks.

"Katara, come on. I'm sure everything's fine, but if we don't start going now, we're never going to leave." He tugged her along back towards the children and suddenly the moment hit her. She had not been without her children since Maya had been kidnapped. Those memories brought about terrible feelings. She hesitated as she looked at her children all playing with their feet and waiting patiently.

"Well I guess we're about to leave. Now are you sure, you children can handle this now? It's ok if you can't. Your father and I can always stay behind…" She heard a grunt and Zuko moved in front of her.

"Uh…no we can't. Katara they'll be fine, really. Won't you kids?" He asked soothingly, afraid Katara was going to back out of their plans. Lee nodded furiously and so did his sister tapping her foot impatiently. Maya and Tenu just rolled their eyes sharing an exasperated look.

"Dad please! We'll be fine! Now you and mom go ahead." Rina said getting impatient. Zuko frowned a bit and stood up straighter.

"I hope you four realize this isn't a joke. Lee, you will have the whole weight of the Fire Nation on your shoulders. Do not under any circumstances be afraid to ask for help if you are unsure. Your pride can mean a big difference to hundreds of families. Rina same goes for you. If you feel you can't handle everything you can always ask for help. Maya, I expect _you _to be on your best behavior. Don't forget your chores and punishment, I expect you to follow through. Since Rina is in charge of the household, she will be checking in with the Komodo Rhino caretakers. Tenu, keep your Grandpa company. And Neea we don't want to send a bad report to your parents. Well if that's all we should really be leaving now. Come on Katara." As he began to turn away his wife stopped she looked at each one of her kids and gave them all kisses on the cheek. Each one of them wiped it off quickly.

"Keep practicing your bending and do what your Lee and Rina say. We trust you all now, make us proud. Bye!" She kept looking over her shoulder waving as Zuko finally managed to tear her away from them. The kids waited patiently as their parents headed to the port to board a boat that would finally take them away.

When they were finally out of sight all of the children sprinted in different directions glad to be rid of their parents finally. Lee went straight to his father's study while Rina checked in with the head maid. Neea and Maya headed off to play and Tenu went to go find Iroh.

As Neea and Maya headed off they did cartwheels in the garden.

"Do you know what this means Neea? No parents! We can do whatever we want! Woo Hoo!" Neea giggled a bit stifling a snort at her cousin's excitement.

"Don't get too excited Maya you know your sister is going to be checking in on us every second she gets…" Maya grinned mischievously at this.

"Well we are just going to have to keep her hands full aren't we?" She smiled smugly, her mind already beginning to toil with some plots and schemes.

Her first plan was to open the windows to let the birds in. Once the birds got into the palace she would run through the house with mud on her shoes. She needed only one more thing to top it off.

"Maya! Neea! What are you up to?" Suddenly she felt the scruff of her tunic being pulled harshly and fell back.

"Ow! We're not up to anything!" She screamed at her older sister. Rina's lips thinned into a line at this.

"I know what you were thinking and I won't have it! If you mess up anything else I have every right to punish you. Mom and Dad left me and Lee in charge, which means you have to listen to us. Both of you! Now Maya I think it's time for you to go help with the komodo rhino's. I already informed the caretakers you were on your way, so hurry before your late." The older sibling smiled smugly walking away leaving her younger sister to pout and cross her arms.

"That's not fair! How did she know?" She stood up kicking the dirt as she went. Neea only stood up after her.

"It's okay Maya, we can go play down by the docks when you're done. I'll see ya later!" Neea waved to her best friend and cousin flying away to go play. Maya watched after he cousin for a moment before groaning and then grudgingly going to the stables to help take care of the rhinos.

She held her nose as she got closer scrunching to try to stop the flow of air into her lungs. Even opening her mouth to breath warned her of the impending assault to her senses.

As soon as she entered the chief Caretaker was by her side. He was a sinewy man with the strength to show for the work it entailed. He handed her a large brush and a bucket and smiled sincerely.

"Don't worry, I won't make this too hard on ya. You won't be much help anyways, not much meat on ya. So I've assigned ya to bathing duty. Maybe you'll become more attached to them if you spend more time with them." With that he shrugged and led her to her first monster. Even for a small girl she could tell this komodo rhino was smaller and more petite. As he stopped in front of her new charge he showed how to gently wash the massive animal. The animal continued to graze without a care. As he showed her the ropes he talked of the animal she was currently bathing.

"This one is still a baby yet. We named her Lan."

After the few hours were up the Caretaker let her go a few minutes early with a wink. She scurried down to the docks quickly to meet Neea who she knew would be waiting for her.


	7. Chapter 7

"Maya! There you are! Come on! I found this great spot…Wow, you stink." Neea who had been originally happy to see her cousin crinkled her nose in disgust. Maya merely frowned and stuck her tongue. Neea merely shrugged and beckoned her fellow troublemaker to follow.

Behind them Tenu followed hastily, using his quiet skills of stealth to watch his sister. He always like following after his sister, especially when she didn't know.

"Neea look over there, those guys are loading something. Let's go see what it is!" Maya ran over and popped her head over some bushes. Neea followed giggling slightly. As they snuck up on the dock loaders, they saw the men working harshly under the hot sun. The boxes were crates filled with trade items probably. The Fire Nation had been doing a lot of trade since the war was over. They traded practically everything they could. Th rest of the world only felt it their duty. Unfortunately Fire Lord Zuko had felt it his burden to carry the weight of rebuilding the world.

Maya slowly peaked her head up over the bushes staring at the men. In her mind she was secretly playing spies, like the Blue Spirit. It was always fun to bother the dock workers and play by the ships. The beach represented a break between the world she knew and the world beyond that she had been to rarely. And even when she had gone to other places her parents had always kept her under their watchful eyes. But what Maya really wanted, and Neea too, was to travel the world alone and free. Just like their parents had.

"What do you think they are loading?" Maya whispered to her cousin.

"Probably some weapons or something, to blow up the entire world!" Neea replied, exaggerating her fantasy. As they watched a shadow fell across their heads and they both turned and looked up. A man stood over them his skin tanned and rough, showing the signs of hard labor.

"What are you runts doing here?" He growled grabbing their collars. Both of the girls let out a yelp as they were lifted off their seats. Neea was quicker and moved into one of her warrior forms. She jumped up letting her leg fly so her foot could come right up against the man's head. He groaned and held on tighter instinctively bringing the children in closer to his sunburned chest to get a better grip.

Maya struggled and then crumpled her fingers into fists making fire. She threw a ball of flames burning the hair on their captor's chest. He instantly let them go, their butts hitting the ground harshly. Maya looked up over to Neea and they shared the a scared glance before jumping up to run.

Their hearts raced and their blood pumped. Something told them all was not right. Suddenly the ground began to rumble and they could feel the tremors crawling up their legs. The ground beneath them rose up against them and captured them, stopping them dead in their tracks. The sudden stop made their bodies fly forward; their knees locking causing pain to run up their bodies.

Maya felt her eyes water and heard more rumbling. Some men ran up to them as she opened her eyes. All she noticed was the braids swinging against their backs and then everything went black.

* * *

Tenu had watched from the safety of his perch as Maya and Neea were knocked out and taken on board of the cargo ship. His eyes wide, he watched as the men loaded the rest of the cargo carefully. He was suddenly aware of his position and turned looking around hesitantly. He couldn't afford for them to catch him too. He had to find help.

Slowly he turned and ran back to the palace. Every second he looked over his shoulder hoping they didn't see him or that he wouldn't get caught and it wasn't until he reached the safety of the palace did he feel as if he could stop running. But he knew he couldn't he had to find help. He ran to the first place he knew he would find people. His brother would be locked up in his father's study with their grandfather and that was where he headed first.

As he ran along the halls the guards watched hesitantly their eyes following the little master slowly. He turned the corner and the guards guarding the doors blocked his entry.

"Prince Lee has requested to be disturbed by no one." The one on the left said.

"No! It's important! Lee! Lee! I gotta speak to him!" He ran past the guards sliding into the door and making a loud bang. The guards hastily bent to pick him up and tear him away from the door. As they did so, the door opened slowly. Lee popped his head around frowning. Tenu suddenly kicked harder.

"What's going on?" His brother yelled, angry at being disturbed.

"Lee! I have to talk to you it's important! Please, listen to me!" Lee's eyes widened. For being so calm, his brother had never acted so out of sorts. It worried him and he nodded to the guards to let him down. Tenu ran inside the study hopping up and down waiting for Lee to close the door. As he did so, the younger brother looked around hastily seeing only his grandfather in the room.

"Now, what's going…" Lee started.

"It's Maya and Neea! Someone took them! I saw them! They loaded them on to the ship. We have to hurry before they leave!" Tenu pulled at his brother's arms the anxiety written over his features. Lee stared wide-eyed and turned to his grandfather with a loss of words. The old man stood up slowly, his features stern and serious. It was only rare the children ever witnessed their grandfather as such and it did not bode well.

"We must be quick then. Lee and I will head to the docks. Find your sister, Tenu. Be sure to let no one know of this until we know what more to do." He nodded to Tenu who broke into a sprint leaving the security of the office to search for his sister. He ran as fast as his legs could carry him until he found his sister in the kitchen planning the dinner. He sped to her, barely managing to stop before knocking her down entirely. As he stopped trying to catch his breath Rina crossed her arms to keep from growing stiff and annoyed at the intrusion.

"Rina…it's…it's…Maya." He gasped out in sow breaths. Rina's face suddenly grew angry.

"Why that little brat! What did she do now?" Tenu took a deep breath as his sister rolled her eyes.

"She's been taken. There was a ship down by the docks and they took her. We have to go now! Lee and Grandpa are waiting for us down by the docks!" He grabbed hold of his sister's hand her eyes going wide and tugged her along. She went running with him without any more persuasion. Her long strides kept up with his quick little steps and they reached the docks, to see Lee and Iroh waiting for them. Without hesitation, Tenu's eyes scanned the docks and pointed to the ship to the far left.

"There!" He shouted as the ship began to leave port. Without hesitation Lee and Rina raced ahead. They flew down the hill to the docks, running past all the dock loaders, captains, and sailors towards the ocean. By the time they got there the ship was too far away to jump. Rina thought fast waterbending the ocean and freezing it for them to use as a bridge. Lee and Rina jumped up and began to run, the water beneath them freezing as they ran. They caught up to the ship after a few minutes and Lee jumped on board firebending the guards. Unfortunately he slipped on some gravel on the ship and looked around before noticing the earth beneath him. The rubble beneath him began to move in unison and then he realized the guards were earthbenders. Without hesitation they threw him overboard.

It was by pure luck Rina saw him as he flew overboard. She cushioned the water beneath him catching him and resurfacing him. As she went to his aid the ship sped faster away. They would not catch it.

They made their way back on to the shore collapsing on the beach. Iroh and Tenu ran to their family hurriedly.

"Earthbenders." Lee spat, the salt water burning his tongue.

* * *

"We know it was Earthbenders who took them, but where are they headed? No one down by the docks had any idea who they were, not even the dock master." Rina threw her hands up in the air exasperated at the whole ordeal. Lee sat quietly grinding his teeth. His intense silence frightened them all.

"We're going after them." Lee said quietly, his voice thick with anger.

"Lee, we don't even know where they're going!" Rina shouted at her brother. He stood up his gaze turning into that hard look the children knew all too well as their father's.

"It doesn't matter. They're headed to the Earth Kingdom, that's all we need to know." He went to the door and opened it gazing sternly at the guard there.

"Have a ship ready to sail to the Earth Kingdom in an hour. We need something light and fast with minimal man power needed. I want our best and most trusted sailors ready to go within the hour. Go!" He closed the door harshly without waiting for a reply.

"Lee, this is crazy. We need to get Mom and Dad. They'll know what to do." Rina replied using soft tones. She hoped the words would sooth her brother but they didn't. She could tell he was getting angry and she was almost frightened. Her brother was never like this.

"No! Dad left me in charge and I intend to fix this. Rina, we're not kids anymore. Don't you remember what it was like when we were younger? When this happened last time? They sent us away! Well now we have a chance to do something. Mom and Dad would get here too late to track them down. We have to act now!" His fist banged against the desk and Rina jumped.

"Lee what's this really about? Your honor?" She spat out standing up to face him. He turned around his eyes locking hard on to hers.

"Do you really want to tell our parents we lost them? Because I don't." Rina's eyes widened and the possible scenarios played in her mind. She closed them off quickly and shook her head. He was right. How could they face them?

"I'll get my things and meet you down by the docks." She said quietly. He looked up a sense of relief on his features.

"I will too!" Tenu said standing up. Lee and Rina looked to him mechanically.

"No it will be too dangerous. You're too young. You need to stay here with Grandpa and mind the nation." Lee said to his younger brother. Tenu stiffened.

"What? No, that's not fair. If it wasn't for me you would never have known where they were. You're not leaving me behind!" He shouted. Iroh shook his head. This whole situation had all the children on edge. He could do nothing but wait. Their decisions now would decide their future.

"Tenu, we're not taking you. We can't be worrying about you every minute." Tenu ground his teeth, his fingers curling into a fist. He turned and fled out the door without looking back. Rina sighed and turned to Lee, before leaving. The older brother watched her walk out of the room as he sighed, turning to Iroh.

"We're doing the right thing, right?" He asked nervously. The old man stood up and placed a hand on his grandson's back. The bit of contact helped relieve Lee of some of his anxiety.

"You and your sister are old enough to make your own decisions, but remember the lesson you learned when your parents were here. You two must work together and watch each other's backs. If you don't the consequences will be far more dire." Lee nodded before heading off to find his things to take with him.

* * *

Rina had finished packing and took a deep breath as she closed her knapsack. She looked around the room as if afraid it would be the last time she would see it. She picked up her bag and her water sack her mom had given her. The last thing she was sure to bring was the necklace her mom used to wear before Zuko gave her a new one. It felt good being able to hold on to something that belonged to the water tribe.

As she carried her things she passed by her parents room. She stopped and slowly went and opened the door. It felt so odd being in the Fire Lord's bedroom without her parent's home. It was so quiet and everything was so peaceful. She touched her mother's wardrobe and she could smell her sweet fragrance. On the other side of the room was her father's things and she could smell charred wood. He seemed to be the symbol of fire and her mother water. So different and yet they had managed to live peacefully. She shook her head and then suddenly went to her father's wardrobe. She opened the secret compartment and took out the mask of the Blue Spirit. She remembered the day she had seen him as such. It had filled her with pride and fear at the same time. She looked around hoping no one was there and slipped the mask into her knapsack. She put everything back as it was and left the sanctity of the room.

Rina walked quickly from there to the docks and met Lee who was waiting with their grandfather. He looked solemnly to her and they looked over to their small vessel. They knew the basics of working a ship but they still were nervous about working their own vessel. They looked to their grandfather.

"Grandpa, will you watch the Fire Nation for me?" Lee asked suddenly nervous about leaving his homeland, his responsibility.

"As if it were my own." Iroh smiled and looked over to his granddaughter.

"We will be back by the end of the week. The servants have their orders, they should be fine. We're going to miss you." She suddenly leaped into her grandfather's arms. He hugged her tightly. Lee stood there, straightening as he did. He wanted to remind his grandfather he was not a child and instead bowed out of respect. His grandfather bowed as well, smiling a bit as he did so. Lee took a hold of his sister's wrist and turned pulling her along as he did.

"Come on, we have to go. We have to catch up to them before they get too far ahead." They boarded the ship, Rina the only one looking back. Thanks to the engineer their parents had made friends with as kids they had a very fast and easily controlled ship. It was small too, containing only two rooms to sleep in and a small underbelly. But it would do.

As they left their homeland, Rina looked back one last time. She wondered what exactly she was saying goodbye too. Eventually as they got farther out to sea the Fire Nation became a thinner line until it was gone altogether.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: This chapter is a little longer than others. (hope you don't mind) Unfortunately I found a serious problem while rereading for upload to fanfic. Some things will have to be changed to make the story more realistic. Darn me. =q**

* * *

Maya woke up hurriedly taking in a gasp of air as she did. She instantly felt the iron bonds around her feet and wrists. She moved around her teeth biting on the cloth gag in her mouth. She turned hurriedly looking around. Next to her Neea was tied up as well still asleep or knocked out. Maya began to nudge her cousin urging her awake. Neea shifted awake and opened her eyes slowly. Looking around, both of them could discern they were in the belly of the ship, next to the crates of cargo. They instantly began snooping. There seemed to be no guards in visible range but being in the belly of a ship it would be hard to escape until they got to land.

Their small eyes scanned the cargo and they could make nothing of the cargo. Neea stared at her cousin as they fidgeted with their bonds. Both of them were in chains. There was nothing Maya could do to burn them off. Her mind reeled and she looked at Neea giving her a look. Neea's eyebrows furrowed in question and watched her cousin.

Maya had never tried this much but just as if she were firebending she built up the power within her chest. She breathed deeply on her gag and opened her eyes. She had barely burnt the piece within her mouth. She narrowed her eyes and looked to her cousin. Neea sat wide-eyed afraid of what might happen if the piece caught on fire. They were both afraid of being burned.

Unafraid, Maya tried again. This time she burnt through half of the cloth. Widening her eyes she grew excited and tried again and again until the cloth had burned through and the ashes fell to the floor. Unfortunately some of the ashes fell into her mouth and she made the most disgusted face. She spit out what she could muster doing her best to get the taste out of her mouth.

Neea stared at her mumbling something incoherent as Maya fell over, losing her balance. She fell in her cousin's lap and sat up. Slowly the twelve year old sat up and with her teeth grabbed her cousin's gag doing her best to pull it down. After fumbling with it they got it down and Neea was left gasping.

"Thanks." She whispered just happy to be able to talk.

"Don't mention it." Maya gasped.

"Where do you think we're going?"

"We have to be heading for the Earth kingdom." Maya discerned looked around as if unsure.

"What were earthbenders doing in the Fire Nation?"

"I don't know." Maya answered.

"I guess we're stuck till we land." Neea sighed.

"We need a plan. I don't think they know who we are yet, we can't tell them. But I don't think anyone saw us. No one will know where we went; it's up to us to get away." With that Neea nodded gathering her courage at her cousin's statement. They had to get away as quickly and safely as possible.

Neither of the girls was sure how long they had been travelling nor how long they had slept unnoticed. They talked amongst themselves in whispers of escape and danger. The fear within them rose deep in their chests echoing across the chambers of their hearts.

The waves of the ocean clashed against the boat trying to sway its passage but to no avail. The lulling of the waves brought the stomachs of the girls rolling simultaneously aching for food or nutrition and aggressively shirking it.

At one point they noticed how the wave had become less harsh, the ship they travelled in sailing more easily. It could only mean they were sailing with the current. Whether it was a current made natural by the winds of the sea or it was the current of a nearby shore they silently crossed their fingers.

For being so young their tactics escaped them. They only knew the element of surprise was their best bet. They had to muster their skills to the best of their advantage if they wanted to survive. Suddenly the harsh lessons of their wary parents seemed useful. They had to remember those most of all.

Slowly they felt the ship lurch slowing gracefully into some unknown harbor. The girls looked to each other and with ease Neea stretched her sore arms and looped her arms over her head. Being double jointed had given her some handy tricks. The only thing left was to lock pick the iron that bound her wrists. She looked to Maya who instantly took her teeth outstretching them to her cousin's barrette in the girl's hair. She pulled it out and handed the other end to her friend. Neea took it clasping it in her teeth and turned it around with her tongue so the sharp end faced out. She bent to her wrists and very decidedly picked the lock that bound her. The resounding tick that sounded made her grin viciously at her success as the chains fell. She did not hesitate to pick the chains around her ankles and then proceed to Maya who urged her on.

"Come on, by now they are probably haggling with the dock master. We only have a few more minutes." Maya whispered harshly. The other girl looked up to her, her blue eyes meeting the golden ones of opposite nations.

"If you would stop squirming this would go faster." Neea gritted her teeth until the chains around her cousin's hands broke and the feet were freed as well. The two youths looked to each other so many things unspoken between them. They each slipped quietly into the shadows and hid behind the giant crates. They each breathed a sigh of relief as they heard voices of men talking on the deck above. The tromping of feet echoed across the ship until they heard a lock being rustled with. There was a click and creak of a small door being opened. Both the girls began to shake staring at each other as they heard the sounds of their captors coming to where they had once lay.

"What the…? Where did they go?"

"Hush fool, those stupid brats are here. Get them quick before the captain hears." There was a low grumbling from one of the men who began to cautiously look and search for their captives. Neea and Maya shared a look as a shadow fell close to them. Timing it perfectly from years of practice, Neea stuck out her foot in the pathway of the giant man.

Precisely as planned the giant ogre of a man fell flat on his face, giving the girls the chance to stop on his body racing towards the escape. The passed by the other man that spoken instantly dodging his arm clinging to catch them. They raced up the ladder out on to the first deck. There Maya turned to just barely see as she caught the gazes of more than twenty men. Their eyes watched her surprised and startled by the fact the girls now raced for freedom. The moment of hesitation sped the girls along until they reached the upper deck. The crew instantly scrambled to seize them having heard the shouts from the men down below.

"Neea!" Maya screamed before lunging for the side of the ship and off it. She splashed into the salty water, her nostrils burning and the current pushing her up to the air. She felt a wave pass her and hoped it was her cousin who had followed suit. Maya gasped for the air above the waters and reached it only to see the men pointing at her. She turned and began to swim as fast as her body could carry her. The fear of capture caught hold of her, as she swam with new renew. Behind her, her companion followed without relent.

Suddenly from beneath them they could feel water pushing upward and their bellies grazed a muddy bottom. They turned back around fear in their wide eyes. The earthbenders who had taken them before were raising the earth beneath the waters to stop them. Behind them they bounded towards them, speeding faster on foot, running on the platforms being raised for them.

"Don't let them escape!" Someone shouted. Maya and Neea clambered jumping off each platform to find only a new one awaiting to catch them. They ran with all their lives until something caught Maya's foot. Instantly the anger building up in her she blew fire around her foot, softening the earth to unusable mud. Her foot released she clambered after Neea who had gained the lead. They ran in the sparse forest that littered the coasts. The earthbenders range was growing weaker as the girls moved further out of reach.

They ran into the forest dodging and passing trees as they went. The bushes and thorns collided with their skin but they could not stop. They had to make sure they could escape. Even after breathing the way they had been taught since they were littler, the stitches in their sides grew. Looking behind them they saw all was clear except a bit of a path that had been left in their hurried wake. Both the girls stopped and looked at each other.

"You think we lost them?" Neea gasped ready to collapse out of fatigue. Maya looked to her in all seriousness.

"They will search for us and we have left them a good trail. We have to get to a town or something. Get to anyone who could help us." Maya said. Her mind had already begin to reel with plans and plots for their long trek.

"We have to be in the Earth Kingdom. But where?" Neea asked still catching her breath and hugging her side. Maya mirrored her movement in the same way, the stitch in their sides throbbing with intense heat.

"I don't know. We will just have to travel until we come across a road or something." She shook her head as she suddenly realized how lost they were. They could try to find the docks again and the pathways from the docks but they risked running into their captors and being caught once more. Maya turned to Neea and they bowed their heads solemnly and began picking their way through the trees and brushes trying to leave as small as a trail as possible.

* * *

Rina came up on deck of their small vessel and came across her brother staring distantly ahead across the water. His golden eyes scanned the water hoping to see the line of the coast grace his vision. They had been sailing for most of the day and they would continue through the night, hopefully reaching shore soon enough. They knew only vaguely and guessingly where the other ship was headed and they hoped they could guess right.

They had reached the shore near Omashu after half a day of traveling but the dock master had only said the ship they sought had docked for more supplies and was headed up the rivers of the Earth Kingdom towards Ba Sing Se. But the children were still a few hours behind.

"Lee, please come have something to eat. The captain says we won't reach the shore until morning at least. Please?" Lee remained silent and distant in his thoughts and Rina sighed.

"I will have some food ready for you then." She left her brother's side her head bowed low; her heart's pumping slowing from the sorrow it held. Lee would hardly say a word and it was all Rina could do not to feel the intense lonliness. Down in the lower deck they had some fresh food waiting for them where Rina could pick what they would eat. She stepped into a small storage room and crouched to grab some fresh vegetables. As she tore pieces of cabbage leafs she stopped at a sudden but small sound. She stood up slowly and looked around hastily. No one else was supposed to be near the food. She suddenly stepped behind a crate of food and saw a small form hovering there. She put her hands on her hips looking down at her younger brother.

"Tenu!" She screeched reaching for him and shoving him up on the upper deck. Lee turned instantly his eyes scanning the features of his brother. Slowly and painfully he took a deep breath.

"What are you doing here?" His voice was slow and calm, the molars in the back of his mouth grinding against each other. Tenu looked from his brother and sister as his widened.

"I can help! Really I can! You can't send me back now, we're too far out. I promise I'll be good…I…"

"Enough! You may have very well risked this whole trip. Captain, turn around we are going back to the Fire Nation." Rina looked up at Lee's words and Tenu's eyes widened a bit more. He stayed on the ground as if a prisoner awaiting his sentence.

"Lee! We can't turn back. If we turn back now we may lose their trail entirely. He'll have to come with us." She said trying to be the voice of reason. Lee would hear none of it and his stance became still more proper. He lifted his chin the same way their father did when angry and it worried Rina. She knew a firebenders temper was an awful thing and she wondered how much control Lee actually had over it.

"No! I won't risk anyone else getting hurt. It's bad enough you're here. No…I can't risk returning home without both of them." Lee said the sorrow and shame truly showing its infliction on her poor brother. Rina came over to him and put a hand on his arm trying to reassure him.

"Lee we don't have a choice. He is our brother and she is our sister. We can only do our best. We'll find them. We have to." She said lightly trying to soften her voice the way their mother did when she wanted to wash away their nightmares. Lee looked up and over to the fear still evident in his eyes.

"What if we don't find them? Father will…" Rina silenced him her furrows burrowing out of annoyance and anger.

"I will hear no more of it. There will be no more 'what ifs.' We will cross that bridge if we come to it, but until then we have to hope that we will find them. Until we do, I will put Tenu to good use." She turned back eyes her younger brother expectantly. The boy sat up wondering what punishment he would receive.

A few minutes later he stood opposite of his sister as they swung their arms back and forth urging the current to push them forward. The added boost would shave off an hour or more of travel time.

* * *

Early in the morning they landed on the shores of the earth kingdom, the dock master racing forward to right down their name. Without hesitation, Lee swept the man off his feet by the scruff of his tunic.

"There was a ship that arrived here maybe an hour or two ago from the Fire Nation. Where are they?" The fear the prince incited in the man made Rina get goose bumps. She stood her ground watching trying to give the same hard look as her brother. He looked from side to side to them trying to buy pity from her and she crossed her arms.

"The ship has left. They unloaded the cargo on to wagons and left maybe a few minutes before you arrived. They made quite a mess, though. I think some dogs escaped or something and ran off into the forest. There are men searching for them now." Lee's eyes widened and he turned to his sister dropping the man as he did so.

"Dock master, supply us with transportation, something fast and swift. Here." He dropped some gold coins on the ground and the dock master nodded his head, greedily sweeping the coins into his pocket.

"Lee, we need to find out what these men were carrying. They had to be smugglers." Rina said to her brother. Lee sighed and turned around. As his shadow fell on to the man still sweeping up coins, the man stopped and looked up.

"One more thing, tell us what cargo these men carried. Who were they?" The dock master gulped and looked from side to side to see who was watching.

"No one really knows who they are. All we know is their base is in Ba Sing Se. They have been smuggling goods from all around the world for weeks now. Today was supposed to have been their last shipment. They had papers so I couldn't stop them. What I know is only rumor." Lee nodded and sent the man scurrying away from them to do their bidding. He needn't know their lineage only that they paid well.

Within a few minutes there stood some sturdy birds awaiting travel. Lee hopped on one with Rina and Tenu siding on another and they sped off into the forest in the way the dock maser pointed.

Lee pressed them on at a breakneck speed until the voice of reason quarried him.

"Lee we have to let the animals rest. If we don't we won't have them at all." Lee looked to his sister his teeth grinding his eyes into slits and tugged on the reins to stop the beast. The bird slowed willingly and stopped its body glittering with sweat. Rina and Tenu hopped of their mount and began to walk beside them. By now the sun just barely peeked its head of the horizon and in a bit it would be gone entirely. They had to make camp.

Lee looked around the camp searching for trails that had begun to grow cold. He yelled in frustration kicking his foot against a tree. He yelped as his toe struck hard throbbing with pain. Rina and Tenu watched with pity.

"We aren't far from the Northern Air Temple. We should go there and see if the monks know anything about what's going on. Maybe they could help us look!" Rina and Lee swiveled their heads to their younger sibling. Tenu had always been studious in his studies and wanted to help ease their frustration at his insistence by some of his knowledge.

"How do you propose we get there then? We don't know the way." Rina said rolling her eyes. Tenu grinned then and pulled out a piece of parchment from his knapsack.

"Well I have a map. We should be able to get there if we follow it right. Here I'll show you. This is where I think we are. He pointed almost at the tip of a river just west of Ba Sing Se. If we head northwest we should come across the Northern Air Temple. Maybe the Avatar will be there to help us!" Tenu said enthusiastically hoping his siblings would be proud of him. Rina nodded smiling happily with the plan.

"No! We can't involve other people. Look, we have to keep going in the direction Maya and Neea were headed and they are going east. The Northern Air Temple is too far out of the way, we have to stay straight." Lee looked back out to the west and Rina shook her head.

"Lee, face it. We lost their trail. Maybe having the Avatar's help wouldn't be so bad. We do need help, Lee. We can't do this alone. We will head to the Northern Air Temple and see if they can help us and maybe from there we can head to Ba Sing Se. The smugglers are headed that way, if they catch Maya and Neea again, they will take them there." Rina said, winning over in common sense. Lee shook his head the anger and guilt he bore too much for him. Rina rushed to her brother taking hold of him and hugging him tightly.

"It's all my fault!" He cried. She hugged him to her trying to force back tears of her own.

"We can do this, we have to." She said in whispers, trying to convince herself just as much.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: I promised I would give a recap of ages for new characters being introduced. It is hard to determine Haru's age but I guessed him to be about 16 in the series which puts him at age 38 like Zuko. Toph however is only 34. They have twin girls who are the same age as Rina at 14 and a son who is blind and 10 years old. Aang is also 34. He traveled the world again after Ozai's defeat in the hopes of finding more airbenders. Since I like to think the world would try to put itself into balance naturally, airbenders started being born in select villges around the world. Aang has since gathered them and begun training them. Gyochu is an OC of mine. His name is dedicated in part to Aang's mentor Gyasto and my obsession with Dragonball Z (Goku). Anyways, Gyochu is 16.**

**A note on the pairing of Haru and Toph: I didn't choose it because i religiously support this cannon or anything. I did it because at the time "5 Years Later" was written I wanted Aang to embrace his monkshood and choose to be abstinent (I mean common he chose to be a monk when it meant he didn't have to kill Ozai right? But when it comes to having Katara he is just like no that's ok, I don't wanna follow that monk rule. Am I right?) That being the case it sort of ruins the Taang cannon, although I officially support it. That being said I chose Haru so readers would have some familiarity and Toph would have a husband and family. **

* * *

The trees all looked the same when you had nothing else to look at. Maya and Neea had given up, mentally making note of what rock they passed and that funny looking tree over there. They were too exhausted. They had to stop and looked around for somewhere to sleep and found a large tree where moss had grown on one side. It looked so inviting they could do nothing else but rest. Slowly they huddled together holding each other out of fright. The night sky sparkled above them just barely visible between the branches of the trees.

"Can you sleep?" Maya whispered to Neea. Her cousin shook her head, her eyes staring at the moon bright and glowing. After a while, her vision faded as she slipped into dreams.

"Neeeeaaa…" Neea's eyes fluttered open and she looked around sleepily. A thick fog had crawled over their sleeping forms and she could see nothing through it. She looked around hoping it had only been a dream but as she turned she saw a form almost made of the fog come into vision. She rubbed her eyes as she gazed a beautiful woman in white. The flowing robes around her moved as if floating in water and kind eyes regarded her. Neea knew without a question who the woman was.

"Yue." She whispered saying the name softly. The spirit before her nodded and smiled. Suddenly the smile dropped and her features softened into a look that would make anyone else feel sorrow.

"Neea, I have watched you every night since you were born and every night your father speaks to me so highly of you. I can never say anything back for I know it would only sadden him. But you're his child and are everything and more to him. You are in trouble and so I will help you to the best of my abilities. This fog I have placed around you to keep you hidden from the ones who chase you. They have given up for the night but tomorrow they will continue their search. I will put up a fog each night around both of you so you can rest, but know this. I can only act at night and my powers are not strong enough to do anything more, but I am watching over you. Now sleep, you are weary and you need your strength." Instantly Neea's eyes grew heavy and she lulled herself back to the cushioned moss and slept.

* * *

"Maya! Wake up! Guess who I saw last night. It was Yue. She said she was going to protect us at night. See I told you she was real! I told you! I knew my dad would never lie about her. You should have seen her, she was beautiful." The child's eyes were wide as the memories of the night before swam past her. Maya stared at her cousin incredulously; sleep still holding a loose embrace around her. But the look in Neea's eyes was one of wonder and hope. To the other girl she saw how happy she was and she yearned to know and understand the spirit world a little better.

"Stop lying! Yue is not real! You were probably just dreaming again." Maya screeched, her own jealousy clouding her judgment. Neea looked at her, the small girls blue eyes widening and the tears coming to the surface.

"It wasn't a dream! I saw her! I really did!" Neea retaliated defensively. Maya would hear nothing of it and crossed her arms shaking her head. The other girl burst into tears and then Maya watched her cousin. Inside of her a knot twisted its way in her stomach, it was guilt. She wanted to believe Neea but she had also wanted Yue to appear to her. Why would none of the spirits appear to her?

Her father got to meet the great Agni himself and her mother the Painted Lady. Rina saw the Blue Spirit and now even Neea had seen Yue. It wasn't fair! She wanted to meet one of the spirits too.

Suddenly they were both very aware there was someone nearby. They turned sharing a passing glimpse to the other. Then they were running, running as fast as their legs could carry them.

The ground beneath their feet rumbling and the adrenaline pumped faster through their legs. Neither dared to turn around fearing what they might see. Their hearts beat faster, matching rhythm to their feet, the sweat beginning to accumulate to the back of their neck and knees. The breeze that swept through their hair wiped the salty taste from their mouths, their breaths becoming coarse.

They kept running and suddenly the rumbling became louder and Maya turned just in time to see Neea get lifted off her feet. Maya stopped, her excessive breathing making her lungs choke. She turned her hand grasping for her cousin's. Neea clasped it and together they were both lifted from the flat ground.

"C'mon!" Maya screamed and pulled Neea off the rising ledge. Right before the earth clasped her forever. They fell doing their best to land on their feet but instead rolling as she did their bodies screaming at them for such brutal abuse.

Standing up Maya looked around seeing the trees that shrouded them and with two fingers forward shot a wave of fire towards the tips of the brush. The leaves caught fire instantly. Turning she did the same to the trees around them. She watched mystified as the burning branches igniting crumble and turned to ash, the leave falling, catching the underbrush. Neea looked to her and they ran. If nothing else the fire would slow their captors' pursuit.

Neea and Maya ran, their little legs growing tired, their bruised and beating bodies torn and ragged. Neea looked to Maya and behind her seeing the fire catching up to them. They had been running for so long, neither knew how much longer they would last. Suddenly the ground grumbled beneath them and they sunk into its clutches. The girls screamed and were engulfed by the earth, the darkness consuming them.

* * *

The rest of the unaware siblings trotted along slowly through the other side of the forest until the already jagged ground became large mountains that seemed to touch the sky. They knew then they were close to the Northern Air Temple. While they trotted along, Rina told the stories their parents had spoken of when they had visited the temple so long ago. Tenu listened with interest for he had only heard the stories a few times. Lee's focus was otherwise elsewhere.

It was right before the sun began to disappear fully beneath the dark blanket of night that they reached the base of the mountain that housed the temple. A gust of wind met them and high above them a boy sat on a flying bison, so much like the Apa the children all knew and loved. The boy dressed in monk's training garb jumped down to greet the newcomers, his face just wide with a smile and happy as ever.

"Welcome travelers!" He said, the very energetic aspect of the wind flowing through him.

"We come seeking the Avatar, is he here?" Rina asked calmly trying to keep her voice neutral although the seriousness of the situation overwhelmed her. The boy cocked his head to the side and shook his head.

"No, Master Aang is in the Southern Air Temple right now." He said slowly suddenly concerned by the strangers' appearance.

"Then we must speak with whoever he left in charge." Lee said seriously. Suddenly the boy smiled and jumped up twirling from the ground as the air lifted him up and onto the massive bison.

"Oh you want Gyochu, then. Come on, Tara won't bite. We will take care of your birds somewhere else." He said urging them forth on to the bison. Lee and Rina looked to each other and shrugged dismounting from their birds. They lifted Tenu first propping their hands like a footing. Tenu flew up to the saddle and sat waiting expectantly for his sister to join. Lee mimicked his sister giving her footing. With Tenu's help she was pulled up easily. Next was Lee, the tallest, and backing up he got a head start and ran jumping and spinning into the air calculating his movements as he did so. His hands landed on the railing of the bison's saddle and easily he lifted himself up. Rina and Tenu rolled their eyes not the least bit interested in their brother's skills. But the little airbender had watched with interest, his eyes wide like saucers.

"Whoa! Neat! You'll have to teach me to do that sometime. Yip yip, Tara. Home we go!" The small airbender bounced around and the giant bison took off. Rina held on until she was sure of her balance but Tenu stared holding on to the rails. He turned back to see his older brother glaring doing perfectly well without holding on to anything. The smile slipped from the younger boy's face and he turned back. As the bison flew up they saw the massive temple and buildings on top of the mountain. Their mouths hung open as their parent's description circled their memories, but nothing had prepared them for the sight they saw now.

"Wow!" Tenu shouted as they came in closer watching a few airbenders fly past them. They ranged in all sizes, some big and little and others so skinny they could disappear between cracks and other like giant balls of fluff. All of them wore the tradition orange vest with trousers eagerly awaiting the newcomers. Not all of them bore the blue tattoos on their heads. In fact most of them didn't. The tallest one among them stepped forward his face a sincere smile, but his posture was erect and polite. He was obviously the leader Gyochu, the leader the boy had mentioned, for he had the blue tattoos that mirrored the Avatar's.

As the bison landed and gave out a low yawn, Lee hopped down helping his sister and younger brother. As he turned he walked towards the leader who in turn regarded them stepping away from the mass of smiling faces surrounding him.

"Fire Nation and Water Tribe children no doubt, you must be the Fire Nation royals, Lee, Rina and if I remember correctly, Tenu. What brings you here to our temple? Hey aren't there supposed to be four of you?" Lee's eyes widened in surprise at Gyochu's knowledge. Obviously he had been told of them in immense detail, most undoubtedly from the Avatar.

"Well I guess that's all for introduction then. Gyochu, I believe your name was? We come here in need of help. Our sister, Maya and our cousin, Neea have been taken by smugglers and we believe they are taking them to Ba Sing Se. We were wondering if you had heard anything or seen anything suspicious?" Lee asked, trying to sound as formal as possible. Rina watched with interest as the other boy's eyes widened a bit as if realization had struck him. She studied him trying to decipher his thoughts. He was tall for his age, taller than her brother, but his face was still young. She guessed him to be Lee's age or no more than a year over. What caught her most was how grey his eyes looked. She could tell they were gray because they were too light and dull to be blue.

"Today there was a fire in the forest in a secluded area. It was just southwest of here. No doubt if you had gone straight instead of veering off to us you wouldn't have missed it. There were also signs of earthbenders, the grounds there were uneven and the plants torn and scattered." He said suddenly beginning to grow worried. Lee turned to look at Rina his eyes going cold. She could feel his accusation coursing through her and it was met with a friendly welcome from the guilt within her.

"Please do you know where they might have gone?" Rina asked, gulping as she did. Gyochu looked up to her and really regarded her seriously for a moment.

"We did not think much of it, as long as it did not concern us. The fire happened this morning. We did not see the smoke until this afternoon. I'm sure the people responsible are gone now." The words came out seriously and Lee turned away from Rina. She came up to him putting a hand to him which he instantly shook off.

"Thanks, Gyochu. I guess we should go now. We have to catch up to them quickly." Rina said biting her lip and trying not to feel so guilty at the thought of abandoning her sister and cousin. Gyochu regarded her with sorrow and pity and he shook his head.

"Sleep here tonight, you are all tired. Tomorrow I will take you to Ba Sing Se myself and help you look for your family too." His voice was almost pleading now; the guilt had registered in him as he felt obligated to help the friends of the Avatar. Rina shook her head at him solemnly.

"No, we need to leave right away and catch up to them, before they reach Ba Sing Se. Who knows what they will do then?" She whispered. The boys that had stood behind Gyochu looked sad and worried. Biting her lip, she felt her heart beat faster for making them all so sad.

"Rina, we can't travel tonight. Even we could, there would be no way of finding them in the dark. We should wait until tomorrow. Aunt Toph and Uncle Haru are there. They will help us find them." Tenu spoke, his wisdom beyond his years…probably from spending too much time with his grandfather. Lee swiveled his head to the boy stopped him dead in his thought with a look.

"And risk everything? You know Aunt Toph and Uncle Haru are going to warn our parents. No, we have to do this without their help." Tenu stepped back a little frightened at his brother's wrath. Rina went to their youngest sibling, almost sheltering him.

"Stop yelling Lee, we're doing the best we can. This isn't about us anymore. This is about Maya and Neea. Their lives are at stake, swallow your pride and let us ask for help!" Rina shouted, her blue eyes glowing hard against the coming moonlight. Lee looked to her, his mind obviously at odds with itself.

"We could always ask Leli, Faw, and Tro to help us. They wouldn't tell their parents would they?" Tenu butted in, once again unearthing thoughts the others failed to realize. Rina was suddenly glad he was with them for they may not have ever gotten as far as they had, without him.

"Toph's kids? I could easily get to them and ask them to come and help us. Their mother's abilities could reveal you if she read your vibrations were close. I will have to get them." Gyochu offered quickly. The plan was good and it would keep them out of trouble, for the most part.

"We owe you for helping us then." Lee said trying to stand up taller to meet the other boy's height.

"Don't mention it. Just be ready to leave at dawn, it's a few hours to Ba Sing Se on Nells." He said easily offering a gentle smile.

"Nells?" Rina asked curiously.

"My flying bison, of course!" He said, the first hint of humor resonating through them. He made a big smile and Rina relaxed feeling more at ease. Trusting him seemed only the most natural of things to do.


	10. Chapter 10

He situated them each in their own separate room and left to get the rest of the airbenders to sleep. Rina unfortunately could not sleep try as she might, and desperately too. She got up and walked around the air temple. Never actually having seen it before, she walked around until she found the edge. She walked through it seeing the rubble. The debris had long since settled but it still had an eerie feeling to it. She could remember her mother's words clearly from the stories. Those were the stories she could only hear from her mother.

"Couldn't sleep?" She turned seeing Gyochu behind her just barely coming out of the shadows. Settling herself, her hand went mechanically to her water tribe necklace around her throat.

"No, I guess not." She said turning away back towards the moon. Its oval shape told her it was almost full and she could even sense the power within her building with each passing night. She often had trouble sleeping during the full moon and the nights before and after. The surge of power running through her made her too anxious to sleep it off. It was comforting for her mother and occasionally Tenu were often up with her.

"You're worried about your sister?" He asked softly, trying not to startle her. She turned to him her sad eyes reflecting her answer. He looked down a bit ashamed at having causing her distress.

"This isn't the first time. I guess she just has a knack for getting into trouble. Neea too." Her thoughts traveled inward as she spoke remembering the fright on her mother's face. She was only four but even then she knew something was wrong, though she may not have known why.

"Seems to travel in the family doesn't it?" He smiled at her trying to lighten the mood. For some reason she felt herself blush, not knowing why and giving a small smile in return. He blushed a little in return making each of them look away from each other.

"Well I better try to get some sleep. We're getting up early, tomorrow and I need to be ready. So I guess I'll see ya later." She looked up to him her blue eyes sparkling causing him to catch himself off balance. Luckily she had turned her back heading towards her room. She turned back as he stumbled a bit and smiled waving a bit. He offered a wave while trying to stand up a bit straighter, blushing.

"Goodnight, Rina." He whispered knowing she would not hear him.

* * *

"Katara? What are you doing up?" Zuko stumbled out of the bed and on to the veranda towards his wife. He wrapped his warm arms around her which was a welcome feeling to the cool night air. His lips brushed the top of her ear, sending shivers down her spine.

"You think the kids are alright?" She whispered her eyes focused on the stars and the moon. The same moon her daughter watched. Her husband nuzzled her a bit affectionately.

"Of course, they're fine. If they weren't I'm sure Iroh would have sent us a message or something at least. Now stop worrying, we've only been gone two days. They couldn't have gotten into that much trouble, yet." She turned in his arms staring up at his scarred face. The face she had come to love like no other.

"I don't know. I just have this funny feeling. Mother's intuition maybe?" She turned to him the distress clearly on her features. He hesitated for a second before grinning.

"You know what the problem is? I'm giving you too much time to worry. I guess I better fix that." Instantly he scooped her up, her body caught momentarily off balance.

"Zuko!" She yelped a bit as her arms reached around his neck. His grin broadened as he carried her over to their massive bed. Throwing her on to the soft cushions he proceeded to pounce on her. His hands slowly began their expert dance, weaving themselves in and out of her robe and along her body. He proceeded to make sure that at least for this night, she worried no more.

* * *

In the east the sun rose, peeking its orange head above the horizon. A splash of red ran across the earth coloring the trees and rocks, eventually crawling up the mountain and touching base upon the temple.

The three siblings dragged themselves from the comforts of a nice bed and out into the light where Gyochu sat waiting and ready, his bison saddled and food prepared. The children stumbled to the bowls laid out beside the fire as more airbenders filed in. A few of them seemed just as tired and exhausted while others bounced around embracing the morning energy. For Lee it was the same. The warm sun touching his face made his heart race and the energy of fire growing within him. He was always an early riser, something Rina and Tenu could never be.

"I have everything ready for our trip." The boy said as he finished his final preparations. Lee nodded towards him as his sibling sat down to gobble down the hot meal hungrily.

"We will leave shortly then." Lee responded. He went over to stand beside Gyochu the two boys matching height eye for eye. They whispered harshly between each other, making Rina mad at them for leaving her out. She turned to Tenu who was still too preoccupied with his food to really notice. She rolled her eyes grabbing her bowl and standing up to join the boys. They instantly got quieter as she neared.

"What's going on?" She asked hesitantly.

"We're trying to plan on how we are going to get to Tro without Toph getting too…uh…suspicious." Lee said looking towards Gyochu.

"If I show up she might get suspicious that something is up and then I won't be able to lie to get out of anything." Gyochu proceeded. Silently Lee turned towards the rising sun, taking a deep breath. His eyes narrowed a bit in thought and then he turned back to his friend and siblings.

"Well we can discuss it on the way there. Is Nells ready? Good, then we should be going." Ushering the waterbenders he loaded them on to the large bison. The bison responded with a yawn, roughly shaking her head. The dark brown eyes regarded the new passengers with interest until Gyochu relieved his bison's stress by petting her. Lee watched amazed until it was finally time for him to load on to the giant creature. He did so easily and Gyochu joined them with a blast of air. The other airbenders came running up to them smiling wishing them luck. Gyochu leaned towards them expectantly.

"You guys know what to do right?" He said to the young benders. They nodded enthusiastically. With a sigh of relief he ushered his bison to fly sending the children into the skies beyond the waving hands of their friends.

"Will they be alright by themselves?" Lee asked hesitantly suddenly feeling remorse at taking their leader from them. Up ahead of him holding the reins, Gyochu turned his head a bit to answer the question.

"They'll be fine. I sent a message to Master Aang informing him of my absence, just in case." Lee's eyes widened and Rina and Tenu swiveled their heads in unison.

"What?" Rina yelled from the saddle. Gyochu turned his eyes widening for a moment before he realized his mistake.

"I'm sorry guys I totally forgot, but I always have to tell him when I leave. Well the bird I sent the message with won't get to Aang for at least another two days or so. I sent it this morning. So as long as your home in a few days we should be fine." Lee groaned and turned to Rina who looked worried.

"A few days? I sure hope it doesn't take that long." He said his voice growing lighter with each syllable. Visibly his skin had paled and his body glistened with sweat but shaking it off he turned back to Gyochu. His expression grew hard as his lips thinned.

"Well I guess we should hurry then." He said mostly to himself. In response, Gyochu urged his bison faster and so they flew.


	11. Chapter 11

The large rock circles of the Earth Kingdom rose up to greet them in the afternoon. The golden rays of the sun highlighted the giant rock wall surrounding the mighty city of Ba Sing Se. They landed outside the city making their way inside as the gates were about to close for the night. With a sigh of relief they headed towards the palace where Toph's children would be waiting.

"Where do want us to wait while you get Tro?" Rina asked butting in before her brother could take charge. Gyochu turned regarded the waterbending princess with something more than mere friendliness.

"There is an inn, above a tea shop the Avatar and I used to go to. It's in the Middle Ring and reputable. You guys should know of it, you grandfather used to run it before he got old. Maybe we can stay there?" He said. Lee brows furrowed a bit in concentration.

"I don't know. Wouldn't they recognize us immediately? I mean it's not exactly hard to tell that we're from the fire nation." The prince responded.

"Correction, _you_ look like you're from the Fire Nation. We have not been to the tea shop in a long time. They won't recognize Tenu and I. We can be visiting water tribe people for all they know. But _you,_ they would recognize instantly." Rina said challengingly to her older brother. As much as she loved Lee, she was getting rather tired of him calling all the shots. Lee looked abashed at his sister's comments until he realized the truth of them. Tenu and Gyochu wisely kept their distance from the exchange.

"Rina, give me some of the money. I'll find somewhere else to go." Rina suddenly felt very guilty forcing her brother to go a separate way but it was the only way. She counted up some coins to give to Lee, enough to pay for his lodging and more if he needed.

"Lee, maybe this is your chance. While we're getting Tro, see if you can find out more about the smugglers who took your sister. There has to be something we're missing." Gyochu looked directly into the prince's eyes. The thoughts that passed between them then were secret and knowing. Rina and Tenu were left unaware. Clasping the other's forearm the boys nodded and broke apart.

"I'll meet up with you guys here tomorrow at noon. Bring Tro." Lee said. He turned then and was gone.

Rina looked after her him, her eyes watering a bit. Beside her Tenu put a soft hand against her arm, comforting her. She looked down and smiled, wiping the little water from her eyes. She looked up to Gyochu who stood patiently waiting. He led them protectively towards the inn.

At the inn a woman greeted them and they were lucky the teashop was busy. Too busy for anyone to take too close a look at them. A woman ushered a tray along and on the way from dropping off the contents Gyochu stopped her politely.

"Excuse me, miss. Can we have two rooms for the night?" The woman smiled kindly down to them and took their money counting it half-heartedly.

"Hi my name is Jin, welcome to The White Lotus. You can have the rooms up the stairs and the last two on the right. Let me know if you need anything!" She walked off hurriedly towards the kitchen leaving the kids relieved she didn't recognize them.

The group followed Jin's instructions and headed t their rooms settling in nicely. Once settled Gyochu turned to his friends.

"I'm going to go see if I can find Tro. You guys stay here and don't leave whatever you do." Rina and Tenu both nodded knowing if they went near the palace their plans would be ruined. Toph would surely suspect something and thus felt rather useless staying behind.

Gyochu on the other hand left the inn quickly using his airbending to help him get up to the Upper Ring of the city here the most wealthy lived. There he knew Toph and Haru with their kids lived in the separate apartments for the chief advisor. He knew his way by heart but getting up to the top without being seen was tricky. The last thing he wanted was for someone to sound the alarm. Fortunately just as every other airbender was, he was extremely light on his feet. Using balls of air to propel him forward it was easy to avoid using his feet. His hands worked seamlessly in patterns he had been learning since birth.

Tro's room was one of the furthest rooms and he had to get past his parents' rooms first. It was good that the night air was cool enough to relieve him of the sweat that was beginning to accumulate on his brow. Working his way forward over the roof of Toph's room, he stopped suddenly.

A loose patch of dirt had come loose and fell. He stopped waiting and listening his air keeping him afloat.

"Did you hear that?" A deep voice belonging to a woman came from below him. He knew instantly it was Toph's and remained quiet. He knew her hearing was impeccable and held his breath in anticipation.

"Hear what?" Haru's soft voice asked. Gyochu waited silently.

"I thought I heard something on the roof." Toph said quietly suddenly suspicious. Gyochu was suddenly worried. He had met Toph on a number of occasions and although friendly he could sense the immense skill behind those blind eyes. She was not one to be crossed and suddenly he was feeling incredibly sorry for his present situation. Using the air he was twirling on his palms and feet he managed to carry himself further as slowly as he could manage.

"Maybe I should go check?" Haru said gently trying to soothe his wife's curiosity.

"And risk you falling again? Ha! No thanks, but you're definitely a whiner when you're hurt." There was a muffled retaliation but Gyochu didn't dare stop to listen as he kept moving silently forward.

When he reached the roof he knew was Tro's he relaxed visibly and jumped off the roof swinging himself into the small boy's room.

* * *

Lee walked silently down the alleyways of the Lower Ring until he reached the toughest inn he could find. Gulping a bit he stood up straighter and took a deep breath. He knew he had to prove his worth tonight. He must not be afraid or at least look it. He was the prince of the Fire Nation and he was his father's son. His father would never have been afraid and so he should not be either.

Moving in he made sure he could feel the weight of his swords on his back. They clanked against him making a soft ringing metallic sound. Inside the inn sat many burly men and more than a few shrewd looking men. Most of them looked scarred from multiple skirmishes they had come in contact with and survived. Suddenly Lee was not so sure of himself now. He felt uneasy knowing full well his skin held very few scars, with all due thanks to his mother's attentions. On the outside he would not look so tough, so he had to do everything he could to convince the men otherwise.

Many of the roughnecks turned regarding him with suspicion as he walked towards the bar. The bar tender looked up, a sizeable man, and lifted an eyebrow. Lee knew he should not show much money and offered some of the smaller change he had for a night's rest. The bartender gave him a smile at his money and produced an iron key.

"Anything you'd be having to eat?" Lee nodded shoveling out the last bit of spare change he had. As the inn keeper turned to get the food another man came to sit beside the boy. His lean figure was tall but especially muscular. He twirled his mustache between his fingers a bit in anticipation.

"Now what's a pretty boy like you doing in a place like this?" He asked his voice deep and rough. He spoke a bit under his breath as the inn keeper turned to him. Turning away the inn keeper ignored the exchange. As long as there was no damage to his inn he didn't care.

Not trying to seem intimidated Lee sipped at the drink set before him. He wouldn't give the man the benefit of his gaze. Instead he kept the man in the corner of his eye watching his every move.

"Someone took something from me, I intend to get it back." The fire prince said roughly. A smile appeared on the other man's face showing missing teeth and others on their way to being so.

"You're Fire Nation aren't you? I can tell by those eyes. A Fire Nation soldier once crossed me, he didn't even live long enough to regret it." Lee rolled his eyes knowing very well this man's tactic. He was trying to scare him. The prince would not be swayed however.

"See here, look. He gave me this scar. I keep it to remind myself Fire Nation scum can't be trusted. Let me guess, pretty boy, you've never even seen a fight, have you? Just been released from your momma's breast ain't ya?" He laughed a nice throaty laugh, completely unaware of Lee's tough appearance. Lee turned his head a bit as some of the other men were beginning to become interested, a little too interested.

"Did you ever stop to think the reason I have no scars is that no one has ever even gotten close enough to give me one." It was a proud boast and little varied from the truth. The man stopped laughing his eyes narrowing. He was suddenly beginning to feel threatened from the boy which made Lee proud as well as uneasy at the prospect.

"Well I'd like to test that then." The man said challengingly.

"I wouldn't bother with you, not unless I get something in exchange." The prince said calmly a plan beginning to form in his head. The other man's eyes widened in glee. To him this was a game, a mere show of muscle and power.

"Depends, what you want, pretty boy, and what _I_ get in exchange." The man said wanting to bargain his share as well.

"There are some smugglers that have been illegally smuggling from the Fire Nation. A new shipment just came in a few days ago. I want to know where they are and who is in charge." He noticed instantly the inn had become slightly quieter. It lasted only for a split second as everyone else began about their conversations. Lee bit back a smile. They had what he needed and he had no intention of leaving until he got it.

"Alright boy, I'll tell you what I know if you can beat me in combat. If I win, you will bow before me and serve me like the pathetic Fire Nation scum you are." Lee looked to him finally, the first time meeting the other man's gaze.

"The rules?" He asked sternly.

"Two weapons, no seconds, first man down on his back loses." Lee narrowed his eyes a bit at the rules suddenly concerned of the fairness of the competition.

"How can I trust you to keep your word if you lose?" He asked cautiously.

"I will keep my word. Let every man here bear witness." The man grinned maliciously. Lee smiled slyly.

"Fine, but only on one condition. No bending. First one to bend forfeits." The man's emotions betrayed a sudden anger. He had been found out. Some snickering behind Lee told him this was normal. Finally after a grumble the man agreed and Lee followed him out of the inn to one of the back alleys. Interest peeked, the other men filtered out hoping for a good fight to go with their meal.

Standing before his opponent, Lee gauged the man up and down as the man undressed. The man took off his tunic showing bare muscle, trying his best to intimidate the boy by flexing and showing his scars proudly. Lee on the other hand took off his vest making sure to keep his money hidden in his tunic. He still had no trust for these ruffians but in order to get the information he needed, he had to earn their respect or their fear. Whichever came first.

"First one down then?" Lee said as he brought out his double blades. They had belonged to his father and he was sure to put them to good use now. He stood up after stretching nimbly regarding his opponent with the famous golden eyes. The other man's dark brown eyes narrowed a bit until he grinned.

"Bring it pretty boy."


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Just a few more chapters to go! Keep the reviews coming, I love them!**

* * *

"Who's there?" The small blind boy shouted as he heard Gyochu's entrance. Gyochu stayed nimbly balanced on his ball of air creating it just in time before he hit the floor.

"Shhh...Tro. It's me, Gyochu." He said in whispers still cautious of the boy's mother.

"Gyochu? What are you doing here?" The boy asked his voice growing softer as he sensed the cautiousness. His voice betrayed suspicion and a hint of worry as to the reason of the secrecy.

"I need your help. Maya and Neea have been stolen from the Fire Nation by smugglers. They came here to Ba Sing Se. We need your help to find them, but we can't let your mother know or she'll tell the Fire Lord and Lady. Lee, Rina and Tenu are here too. Think you can help us?" Gyochu asked seriously. Tro grinned and leaped up.

"An adventure? Like the ones mom used to have? Ya sure, count me in." Gyochu shushed the over eager boy some more. At ten years old he was far too over eager than he should be and not at all concerned of the consequences. But, he was talented and they needed that talent now most of all.

"It may be dangerous but we need you to come right away. Can you do that?" The boy nodded once again eagerly as he stomped his foot into the dirt floor. Instantly the image a beast came through the floor. Gyochu watched, cocking his head to try and figure it out.

"What is it?" He finally asked.

"It's a mole. Mom will think I just went to go play with the moles. Now come on let's go!" Gyochu looked uncertainly at the boy bouncing around. It didn't look like a mole to him, but as long as it wouldn't get him in trouble he would just have to shrug it off.

"Alright but we will have to be very quiet. I don't want to alert your mom or we'll get caught for sure." The boy nodded eagerly the thought of the adventure more thrilling than anything. Gyochu was suddenly left wondering if this was how he had seemed at that age but shook it off trying to focus on the task at hand.

Gyochu led the boy slowly and softly on top of the roof. Thinking it a game, Tro tried to remain stealthy. It wasn't until they were over Toph's room again that Gyochu began to sweat. He signaled to Tro to be quiet as he scurried across the roof.

The second Tro took a step on the roof there was a sound from the room beneath them.

"Tro? What are you doing up there?" Toph called from her window. Tro looked to Gyochu whose eyes widened. He couldn't speak knowing full well Toph would hear him and Tro couldn't see him. Suddenly he felt like he had just been caught, his adrenaline began to beat through his veins and he was ready to sprint at the slightest second. He couldn't fail, Rina and Tenu, they were expecting him to bring back Tro. If he got caught then everything was busted. Then Tro called down to his mother.

"I'm going to go play with the moles, mom." He called down to his mother. Gyochu held his breath expecting Toph to send him back to his room or to catch his lie.

"It's pretty late, don't you think you should be in bed?" Haru said.

"I'll only be gone for a bit dad. Besides I'm sure they miss me, it's been a while since I've been with them." Tro said cunningly. He grinned, his eyes not gazing at anything in particular.

"Try to be back by lunch tomorrow." Toph called and Tro began to scurry across the roof.

"Will do, Mom." He hurried to catch up to Gyochu who put his hand on the boy's shoulder telling him where he was. It was hard for the blind earthbender to sense him when he was floating, so he made sure to try not to startle him. The boy jumped a bit but was fine otherwise.

After breathing a sigh of relief Gyochu led Tro towards the inn. It wasn't until after they were outside the palace he actually walked. The boy sighed too knowing it would be easier to find his guide better now.

"How'd you do that?" Gyochu asked through deep breaths.

"Do what?" The earthbender asked curiously.

"Lie to Toph. I thought she would be able to tell if you were lying. I thought for sure we were done for back there." The boy in front of him grinned, mischievously.

"You think she's the only one who can tell when you're lying? I made it a point when I was little to learn how to lie so she wouldn't know. I'm glad to see it came in handy. Maybe I'll teach you sometime." Gyochu stared back at the boy wide-eyes before breaking into a smile. Leave it to Toph's son to figure out how to outwit her, when no one else could. The boys shared a soft chuckle before heading in the direction of The White Lotus.

"You will definitely have to show me one day." The airbender said, keeping the mood light.

With the moon glowing bright, almost full above them, they hurried to the inn where Rina and Tenu were awaiting their friend anxiously.

* * *

Lee watched his opponent as he had been taught since birth. He watched the other man like a predator would its prey. Every breath the man took and every tense of his muscles.

Rather abruptly the man charged at the boy. But Lee was ready for him easily side stepping the blunt clang of the mace his opponent used. Favoring a two handed weapon for its strength it was easy to tell the man was from the Earth Kingdom. On his hips sat a narrow pointed dagger, his second weapon ready to be unsheathed should the need call for it.

Crossing his swords in front of him, Lee held the man's charge at bay. Pushing against the force of a man, who was at least two times heavier than you, is not hard. You just have to catch them off balance. Swinging his foot beneath him he aimed to kick the old man's feet from under. More nimbly than had been expected the old man jumped just in time moving backward, the force of his weight no longer suppressing his younger opponent.

What had lasted only a few seconds felt like hours and already Lee could feel the beads of sweat beginning to curl at his hairline. The cool night air breeze softened the heat growing from the release of adrenaline through his body.

Stepping foot over foot he circled the older man. Again the man saw an opening and aimed his mace towards Lee's head. Lee ducked just in time, to avoid having his brain smashed to bits.

Suddenly this wasn't a friendly competition, it was a fight for the death. The man intended to beat him by killing him. His father's cautioning words echoed in his head. At this moment he was extremely grateful for his father's instructions and lessons and silently promised himself he would thank his dad for it later.

If he _survived_ until later.

This wasn't a game anymore as the mace in front of the man began to swing violently toward him. He ducked, using his reflexes to the best of their advantage. He knew he would have to think of something quick but he was afraid of actually doing harm to the man unless it came to that. He needed information and that was his top priority.

Swinging his swords out in front of him he crossed them once more blocking a blow from the mace. The mace hung between the swords inches from his face. The old man was so close Lee could smell the stench of the sweat coming off him.

Looking up at the mace Lee narrowed his eyes as the old man's eye followed. Quicker than lightning he arched his arm putting pressure on the mace and moving it forward as he bent his back and kicked the man in the gut. From his hands the mace went flying still caught in the grips of Lee's swords. As the man fell down on to the ground his hand went to his belt where he scrambled for his dagger only to find it missing.

The old man looked up hesitantly as Lee brought a sword to the man's chest. Using all his acting training, Lee put on the most demanding face trying to make the man believe as much as possible that Lee would kill him given the chance.

"Tell me what you know!" Lee said through clenched teeth. The old man's eyes narrowed. Behind them the crowd rustled passing money back and forth as bets were won and lost. Lee paid no attention to them.

"Tell me what you know!" This time Lee took the other sword from his hand and in threat shot it down between the man's legs. The force of his exertion left his sword deep in the soil just an inch from the man's groin. The man began to visibly shake as he suddenly considered the severity of Lee's words.

"Fine, I'll tell ya. Their base, all we know is that they are underground somewhere. That's the only explanation as to why we never see them. That's all I know kid, now let me go." Lee's eyes widened in anger and the man backed a bit suddenly afraid. After a second, the Fire Nation prince calmed down realizing the man told the truth. It was all he knew but it had to be better than nothing. Digging his sword out of the ground Lee back away from the man and turned to head back to the inn. He was drenched in sweat but right now he needed to focus on the clues he had of his sister's captors.

Underground near Ba Sing Se. Something was ringing a bell in his head but he couldn't quite pick it out. He searched through his memories of his school lessons about Ba Sing Se but he got nothing. Then it hit him. The stories his mother used to tell about his father when he was bad. The catacombs were his answer. He remembered now the stories all too vividly.

Shaking his head he quickly threw them out of his mind. There was a reason why they were his least favorite. Every time his mother told it, which was rarely, the tension was high. It was usually when she knew their father wasn't around. If the Fire Lord ever found out Katara was telling those stories he would be upset. He did not want to be reminded of the mistakes he made which had cost him dearly.

Lee crawled back to the inn and found his meal still waiting for him on the bar. Grabbing the plate he walked up to his room as if nothing had ever happened. He had to keep his tough demeanor still, it was like being a spy. Trying to be undercover. The Fire Nation Prince, walking among the rough part of Ba Sing Se. Grandfather Iroh would sure have a laugh.

None of the men bothered him, of which he was grateful, but he took great pains to make sure the lock on his door to his small room was secure and strong. He did not want trouble while he slept.

Tomorrow he would tell his friends and siblings he knew where Maya was and they could be on their way to get Maya and Neea and go home without his parents finding out.

That was the plan.


	13. Chapter 13

A shadow crossed the darkness in complete stealth. Padding through the tops of buildings it leaped and landed consuming itself in the shadows. So the progress went until at last the creature turned its face revealing a mask of blue.

It was then, pausing in the night, a sound reached its ears. Racing towards the outskirts of town; it stopped and saw some light. Crouching over the roof, it looked down on the commotion.

Down below there was a fight between a boy and a man. The adrenaline began to pump and its heart race. It stayed mesmerized by what it saw, its eyes glued and unblinking.

Then the fight was over. The boy had won, making the creature sigh in relief. Pulling its head closer, it listened harder eager to hear what was being said.

As it heard the information it needed to know the creature left suddenly worried of being spotted. It had stayed in one place too long and that was dangerous. Urgently it headed towards the even further outreaches of town, where it knew it would find more answers.

Taking a deep breath it raced through the night still clinging to the safety of the shadows. All around its eyes danced trying to uncover the presence of any lurking eyes.

Then it reached its destination. Careening over the roof of another building it stared down. Some rough men talked amongst themselves. The heavy shadows passed over the grounds quietly as they carried more and more boxes. Peering as far as it could the creature could not make out the writing on the boxes. Groaning in frustration it looked around seeing if it could get any closer.

Edging its way over to the side of the building the masked spy crawled stealthily down the side. It stayed low to the ground crawling on its belly until it reached a stack of crates. Sitting up it peaked over, just to duck as a sudden light passed over it.

Its heartbeat quickened as it tried to remain as still as possible. After a few moments it moved, not sensing as much danger. Peering back over the crates it stared harder trying to make out the writing on the crates. By a stroke of luck the men carrying the crates moved it just so the words could be seen.

F-O-O-D

"Food?" The creature whispered. A sudden movement caught the creature's attention.

"What's this then?" Something lurched forward uncovering the masked spy from its hideout. Still as could be the man eyed it and then lurched for it. Scrambling quickly the man missed by merely an inch, too close for comfort. Leaping outwards the man chased after it, calling out and catching the others' attention.

More men were suddenly after the leaping shadow each eagerly scrambling after it. One swung a spear in its direction catching it across the arm.

The creature cried out, but its cry was lost in the commotion. As the dark red liquid began to surface on its arm, it raced harder knowing full well what the consequences of getting trapped would be.

As it scurried faster around the crates one man leaped at it and just in time the creature extended its feet to make the man bounce off. With extremely good luck the man toppled over the crate, making it open to reveal some of the contents.

With a split second look it was obvious to the creature it was not food the crates were carrying.

It had stayed too long, time to leave. With the information in hand, the spy dodged the next couple of men, all too large and clumsily to catch the fleeting shadow. Hopping on some crates, it sought the cover of the rooftops moving on to them and disappearing in their midst.

The men stared after the creature as its shadow disappeared into the night. Whatever it was, it knew their secret and now they would be in a lot of trouble. Quickly they had to cover their tracks moving their crates to safety, ever watchful in case their spy was still around.

But the creature was not. It had had enough excitement for one night and moving quickly it raced back to the quieter part of town, where the men had all gone home to the families and none were left drunk in the alley. Nothing moved or sounded in this part of town. Crawling into a nearby window, the spy jumped in and eagerly looked its entrance. Blood still pumping, it clamped its arm fearful of how much it had already lost. It had tried to be careful not to lead a trail and it was pretty confident it had.

The mask made it harder to breathe and see so with relief it removed it, revealing a very young worried face. It walked to the water basin elegantly provided and with some skill mastered the water to do its bidding. The water coursed through its veins eagerly as if it belonged there and then when it retracted the wound was gone. No one would have to know it ever existed.

Sighing in relief the spy reached to the back of its head and let down its long brown hair. Stripping itself of the dark uniform it had used all that remained was the undergarments of which it was used to.

Moving slowly the girl reached its bed and hugged the sheets closer. She had learned much but it had almost cost her more than she was willing to give. Still with a sigh she snuggled into the warmth of her bed, not knowing it was the spirit of the moon who now covered her trail.

* * *

Lee awoke with the sun as was customary for firebenders. The warmth of the sun's rays warmed the blood in his body, heating him from the core.

The plates on the floor next to him were bare and clean and his stuff was as he had left it the night before. Everything was as it should be. Getting up he checked his tunic for his coin purse and found it there still with the same amount he had before. He gave a quiet sigh of relief and got his things all packed together. It wasn't necessary, he wouldn't be leaving soon. He was meeting everyone at noon and that was still many hours away.

He went through his morning stretches, awakening his muscles and increasing his energy. Then he moved through his routines, his stances and breathing. He had to keep in shape or he knew his dad would notice. It was soothing to practice his normal morning routine. It gave him the feeling that he wasn't in the Earth Kingdom trying to rescue his sister and get back home before his parents noticed. The tension in his shoulders awakened him from his thoughts and he calmed himself of such things. He shouldn't get stressed or it would just make things worse.

He couldn't practice any bending which was a serious let down but he couldn't run the risk of burning down the inn. That would definitely call way too much attention to himself.

So he dealt with what he could and once done cleaned his face at the basin of cool water. He gathered his things and ordered a light breakfast from the innkeeper. Most of the previous night's ruffians had gone home drunk and so the inn was quiet and empty. Still that did not stop him from hurrying his meal and leaving the rough part of town. He was no coward, but he wasn't a fool either. Yet he still had time to spare so he tried to remember the location of the catacombs as surfed through the memories of his mother's stories.

Katara was a wonderful storyteller and she usually included such details but they were often the ones a young child doesn't care for and usually ignores. Lee had always been too excited to wait for the good stuff.

Pausing for a moment he tried to remember. Something about water, being near the water. Then he groaned. He finally remembered the stories. By the lake there was a secret entrance, but it had been Toph who had been able to find it. Of course when his parents left the catacombs it had been practically destroyed. Still…

Lee looked up to the sun and prayed to the spirits, particularly Agni that he could find the entrance and that Gyochu had gotten to Tro. They would need his help now more than ever.

So the heir to the Fire Nation walked around the outskirts of the city working its way eagerly inward. The sun rose higher and higher announcing the rendezvous point was near. There just as expected Lee met his siblings and their friends. All sighed with relief at seeing the other safe and sound.

Rina, in particular lurched forward and hugged her brother closely. The sudden contact was most welcome to both of them.

"Alright, alright, come on we got a princess to save!" The loud voice awakened both brother and sister from their embrace and Lee turned to great the new companion.

"Tro, buddy! I'm glad you were able to come. Didn't meet with any problems getting out, did you?" The boy asked eagerly looking back and forth between and the earthbender and airbender.

"Nah, no one knows my parents better than me and trust me, everything went smoothly. So what's the plan?" He asked his grin wide and excited.

"I don't know. Did you discover anything while you were away Lee?" Gyochu asked the question everyone wanted to hear.

"I think I know where they are. Our mom used to tell us stories about when they were kids long ago. Well she told us once of these catacombs deep beneath the city. I got some information from a guy last night that the smugglers are below ground. I bet you that's where they are hiding!" The firebender spoke eagerly proud of the information he had secured.

"Then we need to hurry, those men are up to no good and Maya and Neea are with them." It was obvious Rina was worried. She seemed, of all of them, the most concerned. It almost made Lee suspicious of how much information Rina knew, but his thoughts were too boggled to worry too much of it.

"I remember my mom telling me of them too, but it would be a wonder if they were still there. I don't think she has checked in a while. I bet you I could find it though if you give me a chance." The blind boy affirmed everyone's thoughts quickly. They would have no choice but to start over at where they knew the old entrance would be.


	14. Chapter 14

They reached the old entrance to the catacombs with ease. Stopping at the edges of the water they gave Tro enough time to inspect the ground and see what he thought. The small dark haired boy leaned down against the ground and dug his fingers in to get a better feel of the vibrations. He moved around a lot his eyebrows coming together in consternation. Suddenly he sighed and sat on the ground.

"I don't feel much of anything guys. They must have found another entrance but this isn't it." The whole grouped groaned but none so loudly as Lee.

"Spirits! Where could they be?" He shouted into the sky.

"We'll find them Lee. We have to." Rina spoke quietly not meeting anyone's gaze. The tension rose among the youths.

"They could be anywhere Rina! How are we going to find them?" He shouted at his sister who was too lost in thought to even care.

"Look, last night I went out to see if I could find out more about the smugglers. I saw them carrying crates over by the southwestern side of the city. Maybe if we work our way over there, Tro will pick something up." She said cautiously trying to come up with a solution. As she looked towards her older brother she almost took a step back. His face seemed almost as red as the fire he toyed with so carelessly. Just like their father, his anger came rushing to the surface being blocked only by a thin layer of control that began to crack ever so quickly.

"What were you doing out last night?"

"You could have gotten killed!"

"That will take forever! We don't have enough time." Lee shouted loudest, masking the voices of his brother and the airbender. His calm seemed to take over, but instead of the anger, now there was a deep darkness that overtook her brother's features. She had never seen Lee so reserved.

"Look it's the only thing we've got, so I guess we better hurry." Rina shouted in a way that reminded Lee of their mother. It was almost enough to snap him out of his anger and reservation. Almost.

The brother and sister eyed each other dangerously and then looked away from each other. Too much was at risk for them to bicker continuously and they were running out of time. If they didn't hurry they would risk being found out and then their lives would truly be over. It was hard to decide at that point which parent they would fear most, but it was a far off thought. One they didn't dare consider for the reality of it coming true.

"Fine let's get going." Lee muttered and the rest of the group followed silently as he began walking his way south. As the strolled along the edge of the water a quiet serenity overtook the children. Tro was ahead of all of them, his little body tense as his bare feet swept across the sand. His whole being seemed truly focused and maybe that is what constituted such silence. No one wanted to disturb their blind friend for fear of causing him to overlook something.

"Rina!" The brown haired girl was suddenly awakened from her thoughts as she heard her name in the form of a harsh whisper. She turned to regard the air temple monk who watched her curiously. She fell a step behind to keep pace with the older boy.

"What?" She whispered back at him, feeling the deep urgency of the silence.

"Uhm," the boy bit his lip for a moment, as if trying to form the words, "I just wanted to see how you were doing." His fingers brushed against her arm, longing for the human contact that would relate all her thoughts and feelings to him. She stared at him for a moment, those sparkling blue eyes encasing him in frozen ice. He moved forward only because it had become such an automatic response. Finally a sigh escaped from her throat, her eyes leaving his face to trace the outlines of the rest of the gang up ahead.

The breeze was cool against them and next to them the calming sounds of water did its best to relax this already time ridden adventure. But the silence of everyone is what did it, and breaking it felt almost…wrong.

"I just want it to be over." She whispered, the words becoming lost in the wind. Gyochu sympathized with her, he truly did. To bear such a burden was almost incomprehensible to him.

"I know." As she turned to him, he offered a forced smile, a reassuring one. A smile that told her, without words, that everything would be alright. Looking back up to the scene before them she saw Lee eyeing her dangerously for breaking the silence. She narrowed her eyes at her brother who turned around in a huff, the dark smoke almost literally blowing out his nostrils.

"Guys. Guys? Guys!" The ascending sound caught everyone's attention. All heads turned forward towards the small shadow buried in the sand. Rina rushed forward next to her brothers. Tro lay in the sand, the small crystals falling into his ears and over his dark hair.

"What did you find?" Lee was the first to ask desperately.

"There is movement, here. I can feel it. It is faint. We have to be close to the entrance!" Tro was suddenly shuffling through the sand nose first. He seemed almost like a dog caught on a scent.

Moving forwards he felt the vibrations sensing how strong hey got. As he moved to the left they got weaker, so instead he retraced his steps and moved to the right. Still the vibrations got a little weaker. Moving forward the feeling in his fingers and toes told him he was closer. He inched forward further and further until he felt a disturbance in the sand. He considered it almost like sonar, by touching the ground he sent out waves and he could sense how far they went to an extent, but if they bounced off something he knew the boundaries to which he fought in. For this match, the waves began to bounce off a small opening. There was room for stairs below them. All he had to do was find the door and earthbend it out of his way.

"Hey guys! I found it, it's right here!" Stomping with his feet the earth shifted and moved according to the motions of his hands.

The sweat began to build on their brows as the ground moved in front of them giving way to a set of stairs that would lead them to Maya and Neea. Rina almost wanted to shout to the girls to reassure them she was near and on her way, but she withheld the need wisely. They had to be smart and quick. Tro looked to the gang his face giving a worried expression.

Taking the lead, Lee stepped forward and moved down followed by Tenu. Behind the brothers Gyochu fell in pace and behind him Rina. Last but not least Tro stepped into the stairs and covered the entrance.

As darkness consumed them Lee produced a fire with a snap of his fingers. It was a small flame, just big enough to light the way ahead of them by only a few feet. But it would have to be enough. Rina eagerly reached to grab Gyochu's hand, as she was the farthest one away. Tro on the other hand, noticed nothing. The darkness did not affect him in the slightest.

They stepped down further into the ground slowly and as they did they came upon a light at the edge of the stairs. Lee let his fire extinguish leaving a small puff of smoke behind. Stepping down, he moved lightly and signaled to the others to be extra quiet. They understood without a word.

Lee slowly peeked around the corner of the stairs sticking as close to the wall as possible. His eyes turned themselves far into the corner of his sockets and there he saw the smuggling operation.

Many men of all shapes and sizes lifted their crates and arranged them carefully. His eyes scanned the scene and there on the opposite side of the little cave were the girls. The room was lit with the effervescent glow of the crystals around the lair. It was the perfect area to hide their stolen goods, a place where no one could find them. A man walked closer to the entrance and out of fear, Lee ducked his head back into the safety of the darkness. By this point the others eyes had already adjusted to the little bits of light they were granted, but as Lee took a moment to adjust to a comfortable level of vision, he took a deep breath.

"I see them. They're alright, but they're on the other side of the room. We wouldn't be able to get to them without behind seen." The rest of the gang looked down in contemplation, all except Tro who stared off in thought.

"Maybe you wouldn't, but we could! Come on Tro. You and I are small enough to get to them without being seen." Grabbing the blind boy's hand th youngest royal sibling yanked him out into the light and then tucked themselves behind a crate. Lee stared at them wildly.

"Tenu! No, what are you doing. Get back here." The eldest brother ran a hand through his hair so roughly he nearly pulled the strands out by the roots. Rina leaned up against her brother, her hand resting gently on his arm. As he turned to her, he sensed the fear in her as well. Together they watched in anguish as their little brother and Tro made their way stealthily over to the girls.

The men before them seemed too busy to consider the possibility of a stealth attack. As a man walked near the crates, the boys used this as an opportunity to shield themselves with the borrowed shadow. It was simple, a man carrying a box would cast his shadow on the wall. And as the shadow followed its master from box to box, so would the boys conceal themselves in the darkness it offered for a split second.

The nerves in the elder children watching carefully racked up, but the boys were obviously stealthy. So much so it made Lee wonder where Tenu learned such skill.

Carelessly one of the boys knocked a loose box that shook. As a few men looked to the side just out of reflex, they mostly ignored it and continued on their way. Lee sighed with relief, his sister joining in harmony.

The boys managed to crawl further, every second racking their elder siblings core. But as Tenu made it over to his sister he leaned to whisper something. Maya jumped startled by his voice. Just as she was about to let out a yelp of joy, Tenu clamped her mouth shut signaling her to be quiet.

One of the packaging men passed by them so closely Tenu froze. Luckily for him the man didn't bother watching the prisoners, he had other matters to attend to. As Tenu and Maya breathed a sigh of relief he checked out the shackles along her wrists and ankles. They were a hard and sturdy metal. Without a key, neither of the children had the ability to get rid of them. As Tenu looked to his brother and sister in worry, Rina and Lee slammed their backs into the wall.

But for Lee, he felt the need to run his fingers roughly through his hair again. His hair was now a mess of long dark strands. Staring at his sister he seemed to communicate the thought that all was hopeless.


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: So only one more chapter until the end! So review please!**

* * *

Tenu stared at the shackles around his sister's wrists. The red worn calloused skin showed beneath the deep set iron. He had heard rumors of his father being able to burn through chains, but the event had nearly killed him. There was no way Maya had that kind of power, not even Lee. They couldn't risk it anyways, there was too much at stake.

Furrowing his brows, Tenu groaned fingering the iron disgustingly. Beside Maya, Neea looked tired and worn. Whatever instruments she had carried with herself for just such an occasion were gone now. They had apparently not thought this through enough.

Tuning his head, the young waterbender looked to Tro who stared off into space waiting for some sort of direction. Gazing back at the iron chains, Tenu did a double take. He turned back to Tro quickly.

"Tro!" He whispered almost a little too loudly. The boy perked up ready for anything, a quick grin spreading across his cheeks.

"Toph can bend iron, do you think you know how to?" Tenu was gripping the boy, but Tro seemed not to mind. Instead his grin only got wider.

"I bet I could!" The waterbender hushed the earthbender quickly and ducked his friend's head behind the box. Urging Tro over to his sister's wrist he watched the boy anxiously.

Biting his tongue, Tro worked his fingers around the shackles. Tenderly, his nails slipped around and in the grooves. He reached out further with his senses checking for the weaker parts of the metal. Biting his tongue further the boy worked for a few more minutes.

Brushing his hand behind the collar of his shirt, Tenu felt the beads of sweat accumulating. He did not like being so far from water and the heat of the underground space did not help his nerves.

Tro on the other hand worked relentlessly doing his best, to not only figure out the mechanics of the iron shackles, but figuring out the art of bending that would allow him to shape the iron to his will.

They sat there for many long painful minutes. The men began to grow closer and the fear of being discovered deepened. Maya and Neea eyed their captors dangerously, their eyes flitting between men, keeping watch for any possible suspicion. But everything seemed quiet. It was almost chilling, for any moment the men could turn and see the intruders and then all would be lost.

"Ah!" Tenu looked over to Tro who had somehow managed to bend the iron. He was figuring it out but not quickly enough.

"Duck!" Tenu whispered harshly pulling Tro behind the crates.

"Hello there little missies. You're not going to try and escape this time are ya? Them irons will keep ya shackled for good. Then once we finish our business we'll make sure your parents give us a very nice reward for your return. So just sit still will ya, you'll be home soon enough." The man was missing a few teeth, the other that were left to him were worn down so much they seemed about to fall out as well. His head was practically bald, the circle of sheen shining on his bright hairless spot. He was a heavy set man that gave off a rancor stench. But although his sight was unpleasant they feared his strength more. Beneath the flab of skin was pure muscle, muscle they would not be able to combat.

Neea was the first to turn her head from the man, but Maya met his gaze head on, daring him. The man only laughed and walked away.

Tro and Tenu returned to their positions overseeing the shackles on the girls' hands. They had to go quick. Lee was giving his brother hurried looks. Tenu understood. Soon the thieves would turn their full attention to the girls and they would be discovered.

He whispered hurried words to his friend who still did his best to try and break the iron.

With a loud clank, Tenu looked to the shackles where they had begun to crack. Tro gave a wide grin, the pride welling up in him at his accomplishment.

"Hurry! We have to hurry Tro!" Tenu ushered. The other boy looked back at him and grimaced and continued to crack and pry the iron open. As the final crack broke the shackles fell to the floor making a loud sound.

Instantly the men's eyes wandered over to their captives who tried to look as innocent as possible.

As they walked over closer, Tenu braced himself for discovery.

There was a loud sound that came from the other side of the room. As the pounding on the floor dissipated, Tenu reached to look up over the crates. His brother and sister were no longer in sight and half the men had disappeared.

"Come on Tro, do Neea's shackles now. Lee and Rina have them distracted. If you hurry maybe we can help them.

This time with more experience behind his belt it took only a few minutes for Tro to break the shackles around Maya's feet. Once she was free, the girl reached for her wrists and ankles, rubbing them tenderly. Neea was next and with each shackle, Tro became quicker and more accomplished until finally they were done.

Maya instantly went to her little brother's arms squeezing him tight. Neea was behind her hugging Tro.

"Maya, Neea come on we have to help Lee and Rina." The girls understood then the sense of urgency. They had to be quiet as there were still a few men left in the hideout and without the bustling of people the room had grown much quieter. The children had no room for mistakes. They had to move quietly and quickly without being noticed.

They scurried across the room, but about halfway over Maya moved to squeeze through the tiny space between a crate and the wall. As she did, she slipped fumbling down against the crate. The noise was enough to alert the men to their presence.

"The prisoners! They've escaped!"

"Run!" From two separate areas of the room, one voice low and the other high, the echo resounded. Tenu grabbed Maya's hand and together the four children made a break for the exit.

* * *

Up on the surface the sun had gone down and was nearing dusk. The stars already sprinkled the sky winking slyly at all the world. The moon too had already begun to make an appearance, the fog of changing warmth creeping over the ground further illuminating the spheres vibrant light.

Back to back Lee stood with his sister and Gyochu. He hoped that they would be powerful enough to take on the count of at least twenty men. Half of them it seemed were earthbenders.

True to their skill, the earthbenders began to shake the ground beneath their feet. Rina was quick to use the water from the lake to produce a glassy frost for her to slide on against the tumbling rock. Gyoshu meanwhile balanced himself with air as he knocked his feet off the ground. With his staff he swung it in a circle producing a whirling current of wind that lifted him off the ground. Like stewing a pot he used one end to keep the current moving consuming him. With the other end high above his head, he used the staff like a rudder to guide his way through some men. But getting hit by a gust of wind only maddened the thieves ever more and bounding back they charged.

Lee was left with the other third of the men. To his surprise he even recognized some of the ones from the bar where he had exhibited his skills. But to his satisfaction they seemed weary of him. It was all the doubt and fear Lee needed.

Turning his fists and punching the air he hurled blasts of fire out at them. His feet were limber and steady helping him to dodge their own attacks and to jump off the moving rock beneath his feet. From stepping stone, to stone, he moved against the rocks stepping on them lightly and flinging himself at the nearest man. One nicely placed punch to the face made one go reeling. Another man stepped behind him but before the strong arms crushed his neck, Lee sidestepped bringing the palm of his hand against the base of the skull on the back of the head.

Two men down.

Rina however was not doing as well. The rocks became mud as soon as her water touched the earth. The sloshing of the mud and the attempts of the earthbenders to control the gooey substance became quite a hassle. Still Rina drew from the lake, making the ground beneath her more water than earth. With that in mind she raised her hands causing spews of ice to come crushing up through the men's shoes. Their sudden howls were music to her ears as they tumbled down. Turning carefully she extracted some more water and with it flung her water whips against her attackers that surrounded her. Although the blows knocked them back and kept them howling, it did not stop them.

The swift airbender however was using his air as a mask to cover him. Striking mostly at the delicate eyes to confuse his attackers he would blow the wind at the back of their knees causing them to topple. As the men fell it took only one quick leap and mid air kick to dig the brutes' faces into the ground.

Slowing their attackers was one thing, but stopping them completely was the problem they faced now. The men regrouped and surrounded the children the rage swimming through their veins like adrenaline.

"Lee it isn't working." Rina's voice shook with fear as she backed into her brother. Gyochu, next to them spread his arms out to protect them both.

"Remember what mom and dad said. We have to work together as a team." He whispered. Rina nodded as Gyochu shared a glance with her.

All at once Lee charged ahead into the men without warning. Striking at the torso with his raging fire, Rina swept underneath him hitting the men at their shins. Those who ducked from Lee met with another problem down below.

Above the flames, one of the men rose up riding the earth like a surfboard. Dodging the blasts from the firebender prodigy he took a turn to seize his chance at the waterbender. Hearing the noise above her she looked up just in time for a shadow to pass over her eyes.

Gyochu forced a blast of wind back at the guy causing him to fly in the air. Her mind spinning Rina jumped at the chance to use her water to force the disgusting man into the water, where there was no earth to save him.

Lee looked to his sister and between them they passed the look onto Gyochu. Slowly one by one they began to try and target the earthbenders, drawing them out and separating them and then passing them into the water.

As Rina turned to smile at Gyochu their attention turned to the screams coming from behind the men.

"We got your brats, surrender now." A gruff voice called out. Rina and Lee had both gone pale as Tenu and Maya were ushered forward two men guarding each. Behind them was Neea with only one guy and being led by the hand Tro stumbled playing the part of a blind boy.

Sweaty men came up behind the older children taking Rina first. Grabbing her hands they placed them behind her back putting pressure and pain on her shoulders.

"Rina!" The boys yelled out in unison. Behind them men came up grabbing Lee by his unkempt hair and pulling it back. He yelled out in pain.

"Tro now!" Gyochu yelled as another man tried to grab the airbender. Smiling viciously the young earthbender leapt away from his custody and earthbended the men into their own separate cages.

Lee got the hint elbowing his captor and seizing the man dug him to the ground. Maya, Neea and Tenu finally free grabbed the metal off the boxes, used to keep their shapes and began placing it about the men's wrists. With all due haste, Tro ran around perfecting his new metalbending skill by locking the men's' hands behind their backs. Once those men were done, Rina gravitated towards the water and with the sweeping movement of her hands urged the waves to bring the drifters closer to her. One by one they were captured as well and tied up. As the last man lay bound and groaning, trying to twist out of his binds, the children stopped for a moment.

"Maya!" Rina ran to hug her sister closely, Maya doing her best to push the girl off. Taking Neea into his arms Lee joined his sisters.

"I'm so glad you are alright. Oh spirits I was so worried about you." Tears began to swell in Rina's eyes as she hugged both of the girls. A cough broke the moment momentarily as the children all turned to stare at Tro.

"You guys have to go. I can feel guards coming. I bet my mom is with them. You have to go now before she feels your vibrations!" Rina and Lee nodded and each grabbed a girl by the hand, Tenu and Gyochu following closely after. Stopping midflight Rina turned back to Tro smiling.

"Thanks again Tro." She whispered into the night. The blind boy smiled into the darkness as Rina ran off after her friends and siblings.


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: Last chapter everyone! Please review! **

**I would however like to thank all those faithful reviewers who have been reading since the beginning. Your encouragement and constructive criticisms have helped me make this story better. You all know who you are!**

* * *

The children ran as far from where Toph was as they possibly could. It was getting later in the night though, but their time was running out. They had to get back home before their parents did.

They raced to the secret spot where Nells was hidden and lounging. At seeing Gyochu, the bison bellowed, sniffing her friend.

Petting and hugging the fury beast Gyochu helped the children get on. They had to get out now before they were discovered. The night air would hopefully hide them well enough until they reached the Northern Air Temple.

* * *

Rina rested against the wide saddle of the bison with Maya, Neea and Tenu curled up against her. Unable to sleep Lee went over to Gyochu's side to keep the airbender company. After everything they had been through the teens were tired but it was only about an hour to the temple and they only had to stay awake for that long until they reached their destination.

"Hey how are you doing?" Lee asked sitting next to the airbender. The boy yawned and readjusted his grip on the reins.

"Just tired, you know? It's been a hectic few days. But it's over now. Everyone is safe." The cool words fell into the breeze sweeping over the boys.

"I couldn't have done it without you man. You know I really never had a best friend and I would like to think you come pretty close." Lee smiled as Gyochu stared back.

"Hey, anytime you need help just let me know. You know it's almost like the stories Avatar Aang used to tell us. It felt good, making my own adventures for once. Of course it would have been nicer that they had been under different circumstances." Gyochu glanced back to the sleeping forms in the back. Lee shared his glance too giving a smile as he did.

"Don't we all?" The boys shared a small laugh and continued talking until they reached the Northern Air Temple.

Sneaking in during the night, they awakened only a few children more sensitive to sound than others. Ushering everyone to bed, they slept the night away.

* * *

As Rina stretched herself awake, she knew that this tiny relief was over. Soon they would have to leave, her brother would see to that.

Sitting up in her bed she made sure everything of hers was packed and ready. Making the bed she tried to leave everything as she found it. She knew Maya would already be awake, as would Lee. And if Maya was awake, so was Neea. Tenu too may have already risen.

Her thoughts were proven as she passed by each of her siblings' rooms. Feeling somewhat guilty about waking so late, she went to seek out her brother.

Stepping out to the main room, there was a water fountain that had been brought back into commission.

There one form leaned against the water. His new bright garb of yellow told her his identity immediately.

As he heard her footsteps he turned and smiled. She gazed at Gyochu warmly and ran to hug him. He embraced her and after a moment stepped back. Moving his hand beneath his tunic he pulled out a small blue flower.

"I saw it this morning when I was out helping tend our fields. I saw it and thought of you." He whispered gently. Her breath caught as he took the flower and placed it in her hair. Its four leaf bloom arched over her head, its orange stems poking out from a yellow inside.

"There you are! You're finally awake! Come on, we're all waiting for you." Lee barged in interrupting the moment. Completely unaware he took a split second to glance at the flower in his sister's hair then moved on.

"Ugh…ya I got Nells ready. We should reach the Fire Nation by tonight, no problem." The young airbender stepped in trying to avoid Lee's scrutiny. It seemed to work as Lee looked back at Gyochu.

"Great. I want to leave in five minutes." He said sluggishly looking back at the two before heading off.

Rina blushed looking back at Gyochu who also seemed a little out of sorts. Shifting his weight weakly he looked like he was about to say something and then shutting his mouth gave a forced smile. Taking a deep breath he backed away to head towards his bison, leaving Rina all alone.

"Come on Rina, we got to go." Startled Rina jumped around hugging her chest as her heart raced at the sudden fright. She hoped her flush wasn't evident. Tenu however looked at her oddly, not quite knowing what to say. Nodding she followed the boy to prepare for their flight and their way home.

* * *

The whole gang traveled on top of Nells for hours. At first the children swapped stories f what had happened. Maya and Neea related of their adventure and how they had tried to escape. Neea was especially eager to talk of how Yue had protected them at night.

Although Maya wasn't sure whether she should believe it or not, Rina smiled and knew it had to be true. The spirits had watched over her sister and cousin in their time of need.

The two girls then proceeded to relate their recapture and confinement. They both looked sad then until Rina had to question them. But they were mute on the subject. The feeling of hopelessness and fear was still raw in their minds. They both preferred not to ever think of it.

Rina allowed them this because she knew the feeling all too well. Lee beside her was quiet as well. Then in one fell swoop the four children hugged each other warmly just glad to be together again.

For the rest of the trip the older siblings related their individual stories although Rina barely mentioned her time as the Blue spirit and Lee hid his duel with the man from the inn. And although there were some secrets there was a lot of sharing.

But once the stories were done with the children loomed around the bison's saddle watching the clouds go by. The land of the Earth Kingdom had since disappeared signaling their flight was only half way done.

The breezes that wiped their faces calmed them and allowed their minds to wander. From cloud to cloud each of their own thoughts occupied the children until they could think no more. A few of them tried to nap, but for some resting was impossible. So it was they waited many hours soaring across the ocean until land finally came into view.

As the lands of the Fire Nation came into view, Lee became more excited. All the Fire Nation children seemed anxious to see the city of Sozin placed in its wide canyon. In the middle of the city was the palace that stood out beckoning the children to come home. Slowly Gyochu reigned in Nels to circle downwars to a landing spot at the head of the castle. Outside the old bent figure of Iroh stood awaiting for their arrival. Earlier a scout had seen the bison flying low in the skies and had signaled the palace of the visitor.

The bison swept down spiraling to the ground where it landed with a thud. Almost instantly the four fire nation children jumped off, followed by Neea. Gyochu on the other hand stayed behind patting his bison's fur and giving it the affection it needed to feel loved. Staring at the family reunite he felt a sort of longing for something he was missing in his life. Then he remembered all the kids back at the temple who would welcome him the same way and smiled.

"Children, you are all back and safe! Now come on in and have a cup of tea, you must be tired. You too, master airbender!" Gyochu passed off his bison reluctantly to the animal caretakers and followed the other kids for a drink of tea.

* * *

Later as Maya, Neea, and Tenu ran off to play, Lee disappeared to his father's study. The smell of wood and ash was fragrant in the air bringing back so many memories from when he was a boy. Ruffling his hair nervously he looked through the papers all neatly organized on his father's desk. Everything had been done for him and nothing was left unattended.

Iroh entered the room slowly aware of his grandson's presence already. Lee heard him instantly, but refused to look at him.

"Well, Lee. What's this all about?" Iroh used his cane to move closer to the boy. Lee however took his first seat across from the Firelord's desk. He couldn't even bear to look at his uncle.

"Well looks like everything's already done here. I thought at least I could write a decree or sign a proposal, maybe even delegate the courts. But it's all done." Lee said quietly. Iroh smiled and hobbled closer to his grandson.

"Well I made sure the advisors had everything finished so you could rest when you came back. You're still a boy, Lee, there is no reason to stress yourself out so much. Enjoy your time as a child, it won't last forever." This speech did not sit well with Lee however. Jumping to his feet he slammed his hands against the desk.

"But I wanted to prove I could be Firelord. Dad won't know, but I would. I dreamed of this, being the perfect Firelord while dad was away. It was my one chance and now it's gone. There is nothing for me to do." Despite his attempts to stop it, the water began to accumulate in his eyes. He seethed breathing so hard smoke slipped through his lips. But Iroh was not disconcerted. Placing a hand on the boy's shoulder he gave it a gentle squeeze.

"Is that what this is all about then? You think being a Firelord is about the paperwork and the delegations?" Iroh's calming voice broke the silence. With it came a tinge of disappointment and regret. Lee moved his head to the side to see his uncle out of the corner of his eye. Golden eyes gazed back at him.

"Well I'm sorry you feel like that Lee. But that is not what a Firelord's duty is. You must remember, above all else, the Firelord is a man. Your father would have given anything up for you, your siblings and your mother. It is the strength he uses to protect his family that he extends to the entirety of the Fire Nation and even the world itself. As a leader you protect your family and your people first. Worry about the trade schedule and the crop seasons later. That can wait, some other things can't. I think you're going to be a great Firelord one day. But you don't need to prove that today." Lee looked up to his grandfather and nodded his head to leave. Iroh meanwhile sat down in the Fire Lord's chair exhausted. He just didn't have the stamina to chase after another boy of sixteen.

* * *

Meanwhile at the entrance to the palace Gyochu waited. Hearing footsteps behind him he turned to see Rina staring at him.

"So you're leaving?" She asked. Moving closer Gyochu tuned to gaze at the flower still placed in her beautiful brown hair. Blue eyes stared up at him as he adjusted the flower to stay.

"Ya I need to get back to the Northern Air Temple before the Avatar does." He said weakly. Clearing his throat he looked away suddenly nervous.

"When will I see you again?" Rina asked hurriedly. Gyochu's gray eyes widened letting in the light and contracting his pupils.

"Well I don't know. Maybe next time I'm in the Fire Nation or if you go to visit Toph maybe you could stop off at the Northern…" At that moment light on her feet Rina reached up and kissed him sweetly on the cheek. Gyochu stopped talking and just stared at her as she blushed.

"Thank you for everything Gyochu and I'll be sure to visit if I'm ever nearby." Smiling she stepped away and he knew that was his cue to leave while he had the chance. Stepping back he got on to his Bison and with one last wave flew away.

* * *

The next day early in the morning Zuko and Katara landed at the docks with Katara at the front of the ship waiting to see her kids in view. Katara was the most anxious. During her whole time away she felt worried about her kids and leaving them alone. Seeing them at the docks waiting for her set her at ease. She just had to have them all in her arms.

Rushing down as soon as the ship stopped she grabbed her youngest in her arms first. Squeezing him tightly she next went to her oldest children.

"Look at all of you. You are all fine and you look so good. And here I was worried." Behind her, Zuko came up giving his youngest a hug. When he managed to wrench the oldest children from Katara's hands he hugged them as well. But as soon as they could his eyes sought out his son's.

"I expect everything is in order Lee?" Zuko asked with a smile. Lee smiled back.

"Ya dad. Everything is fine." Patting his son's shoulder Zuko gave a nod that to Lee was just as good as a 'well done.'

"Hey mom, what's that?" Katara turned to look up in the sky where Maya pointed. Covering her eyes to better avoid the sun she watched as a bison circled overhead only to land sharply.

From the top of the bison jumped Aang. His appearance was rough and he looked as if he hadn't shaved in days. Hurrying to Katara and Zuko he called out to them.

"Katara, Zuko I came as fast as I could, your children are…" He stopped then suddenly as he saw the frantic looks from Lee and Rina. Shaking their heads and waving their hands they tried to give every signal they could to stop Aang from saying anything more. Katara and Zuko stared blankly at the Avatar awaiting an explanation.

"uhh…," Aang gulped and stood up straightening himself out, "I hear they're training more now. How's that going?" Lee and Rina looked up to their parents tensely hoping they would excuse the Avatar's reaction.

"Well it's going fine Aang. But surely you did not need to fly so quickly to find that out did you?" Katara answered slowly and rather confused.

"Wel you know I was in the neighborhood. Sorry don't know what overcame me." H gave an innocent grin while Katara continued to look at him oddly.

"So Mother. How was your trip with Father? Where did you go?" Hastily changing the subject Rina begged for her mom's attention and hurriedly began to keep her busy with questions of her vacation.

Katara smiled happy to talk to her daughter. Together they turned to move towards the palace where a hot meal was awaiting all of them.

Reaching down Zuko put a hand out to stop Lee and let everyone else move forward without knowing. Leaning down to his son, who wasn't that much shorter than him, Zuko gave a sly smile.

"Next time you run off after your sister and cousin and put our whole family in danger, I would like to know." Lee groaned inwardly knowing full well he was in big trouble. "But this time I'm going to let it slide and not tell your mother."

Lee turned to his father and Zuko winked at him and began moving towards the rest of the family. But Lee was still in shock. His father knew? For how long? How?

"How did you know?" Lee asked catching up to his father. With a sly smile Zuko handed his son a letter signed by Toph. Groaning again Lee followed his dad, just happy he wasn't going to get in trouble.

This time.


End file.
